So, lets put ourselves here in Donald Trumps shoes. So, what does he see? Right? He sees a former director of CIA and a former director of NSA, Mike Hayden, who I have the greatest respect for, criticizing him and his policies. Right? And he could rightfully have said, Huh, whats going on with these intelligence guys? Right?
And then he sees a former acting director and deputy director of CIA criticizing him and endorsing his opponent. And then he gets his first intelligence briefing, after becoming the Republican nominee, and within 24 to 48 hours, there are leaks out of that that are critical of him and his then-national security advisor, Mike Flynn.
And so, this stuff starts to build, right? And he must have said to himself, What is it with these intelligence guys? Are they political? The current director at the time, John Brennan, during the campaign occasionally would push back on things that Donald Trump had said.
So, when Trump talked about the Iran nuclear deal being the worst deal in the history of American diplomacy, and he was going to tear it up on the first dayJohn Brennan came out publicly and said, That would be an act of folly. So, he sees current sitting director pushing back on him. Right?
Then he becomes president, and hes supposed to be getting a daily brief from the moment he becomes the president-elect. Right? And he doesnt. And within a few days, theres leaks about how hes not taking his briefing. So, he must have thoughtright?that, Who are these guys? Are these guys out to get me? Is this a political organization? Can I think about them as a political organization when I become president?"
So, I think there was a significant downside to those of us who became political in that moment. So, if I could have thought of that, would I have ended up in a different place? I dont know. But its something I didnt think about