CIA Director Leading Current Talks with North Korea In Preparation for Kim-Trump Summit
I would hope that the US government is holding secret, direct talks with the North Koreans in preparation for the Kim-Trump summit. Does CNN think they should hold negotiations on the White House Facebook page?:
The United States and North Korea have been holding secret, direct talks to prepare for a summit between President Donald Trump and North Korea leader Kim Jong Un, a sign that planning for the highly anticipated meeting is progressing, several administration officials familiar with the discussions tell CNN.
Central Intelligence Agency Director Mike Pompeo and a team at the CIA have been working through intelligence back-channels to make preparations for the summit, the officials said. American and North Korean intelligence officials have spoken several times and have even met in a third country, with a focus on nailing down a location for the talks. (………)Officials said the decision to use the already existing intelligence channel was more a facet of Pompeo’s current status as CIA director as he awaits confirmation as secretary of state than a reflection of the content of the discussions. Pompeo is expected to begin the process of Senate confirmation in the next several weeks.One of Trump’s most trusted national security advisers, Pompeo has led efforts to prepare for the summit, which Trump has pressed his aides to organize. If he confirmed, he will assume oversight of the diplomatic preparations. [CNN]
You can read more at the link.
My hope is this is just CNN slinging the term “secret” around unaware/indifferent to the US Gov’t definition (nondisclosable/nonreleasable).
“…holding secret talks to prepare for a summit…” and “…several administration officials familiar with the discussions tell CNN…”
If both are true, then those “officials” should be made examples of. The proper handling of classified information is beat into your head and beat into your head and beat into your head. Then you’re going to sit through a classified briefing, walk out, and go tell CNN?
“…several administration officials familiar with the discussions tell CNN…”
Hopefully CNN is taking as much a license with the words “officials” and “familiar” as it does with everything else.
CNN on classified information: As long as they tell the public that its secret, then the public knows not to tell anyone, BWAHAHAHA.
It’s OK to mishandle classified information as long as there was no intent, right?