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intelligence gathering, espionage

Thursday 2nd of October 2025

2016 Presidential election The president's intense resistance to the assessment of U.S. intelligence agencies that Russia systematically interfered in the 2016 campaign – and the blame he cast instead on a rival country – led many of his advisers to think that Putin himself helped spur the idea of Ukraine's culp- ability, said the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe internal discussions. One former senior White House official said Trump even stated so explicitly at one point, saying he knew Ukraine was the real culprit because “Putin told me.” Washington Post, December 19, 2019 © 2019 Kwiple.com
2016 Presidential election When you learn that the bank you borrowed money from is actually owned by a drug cartel, should your first reaction be, “Well, we got a good interest rate”? The simple reality is that the Republican Party was in buiness with Russian intelligence efforts, what used to be known as the KGB, and precious few leading the Republican Party seen to give a damn. Stuart Stevens, It Was All a Lie © 2020 Kwiple.com
2020 Presidential election Intelligence gathered in advance of January 6th did not suggest a conclusion that Antifa or other left-wing groups would likely engage in violent counter-demonstrations or attack Trump supporters on January 6th. Indeed, intelligence from January 5th indicated that some left-wing groups were instructing their members to “stay at home” and not attend on January 6th. Ultimately, none of these groups were involved in any material extent with the attack on the Capitol on January 6th. January 6 Commitee Report - Summary, 14th of 17 “specific findings” © 2022 Kwiple.com
2020 Presidential election No intelligence collection was apparently performed on President Trump's plans for January 6th, nor was there any analysis performed on what he might do to exacerbate potential violence. … And, on January 4, 2021, another rally organizer texted Mike Lindell, the MyPillow CEO, that President Trump would “unexpectedly” call on his supporters to march on the Capitol: This stays only between us … it can not get out about the march because I will be in trouble with the national park service and all the agencies but POTUS is going to just call for it “unexpectedly.” January 6 Commitee Report - Summary © 2021 Kwiple.com
2020 Presidential election  No intelligence community advance analysis predicted exacty how President Trump  would behave; no such analysis recognized the full scoope and extent of the threat to the Capitol on January 6th. January 6 Commitee Report - Summary, from the 15th of 17 “specific findings” © 2021 Kwiple.com
Bullshitters say The president does read and he also consumes intelligence verbally. This president, I'll tell you, is the most informed person on planet Earth when it comes to the threats that we face. Kayleigh McEnany, Trump's press secretary, responding when asked why Trump doesn't read the President's Daily Briefing, which reported that Russia was paying the Taliban to kill American troops in Afghanistan © 2020 Kwiple.com
Decision making Collective preferences tend to be solid. They tend to reflect the underlying needs and values of the whole body of citizens, in light of the best available information from experts and commentators. … [An] important caveat is that collective opinion sometimes does not reflect the best available information because individuals' errors do not always “cancel out.” This is particularly true if systemic misinformation is fed to many Americans at once and is not effectively contradicted. Examples include “fake news” transmitted by social media or … presidents or … executive branch officials who have a near monopoly on intelligence sources. Benjamin Page and Martin Gilens, © 2019 Kwiple.com
Foreign relations The hard-liners [in Reagan's administration] felt that foreign policy and covert operations were an exclusively presidential domain. ““The business of Congress is to stay the [expletive] out of my business” is how Reagan's first C.I.A. director, William Casey, put it in an interview with the political scientist Loch K. Johnson. Mattathias Schwartz, New York Times Magazine, June 7, 2020 © 2020 Kwiple.com
Intelligence gathering Intelligence is about seeing and understanding. Counterintelligence is about making that difficult for others. Active measures, such as the [Russian] operation on behalf of the fictional character “Donald Trump, successful businessman,” are about inducing the enemy to direct his own strengths against his own weaknesses. Timothy Snyder The Road to Unfreedom © 2021 Kwiple.com
Kwiplers say I accuse Republican members of the House Intelligence Committee Devin Nunes (CA), Chairman Paul Ryan (WI), Ex officio Mike Conaway (TX) Tom Rooney (FL) Rick Crawford (AR) I. Ros-Lehtinen (FL) Trey Gowdy (SC) Elise Stefanik (NY) Will Hurd (TX) Chris Stewart (UT) Peter King (NY) Mike Turner (OH) Frank LoBiondo (NJ) Brad Wenstrup (OH) of abrogation of duty in investigating the degree of Russian interference in the 2016 elections ——— Specific charges ——— • Failing to call key witnesses • Failing to verify witness statements • Failing to supboena uncooperative witnesses & witnesses who lied • Leaking secrets for partisan gain • Denying Putin favored Trump • Failing to inform Democratic committee members of meetings • Prohibiting Democratic input to written committee reports • Failing to await special counsel Robert Mueller's findings • Putting Republican Party interests above the nation's © 2018 Kwiple.com
Public discourse Trump told one ally this week that he wanted “to brand” the informant [the FBI used in the early stages of its investigation of possible collusion with Russia by Trump's associates] a “spy,” believing the more nefarious term would resonate more in the media and with the public. NBC Miami, May 23, 2018 © 2018 Kwiple.com
Republican Party The second unforgivable sin is Trump's encouragement of a foreign adversary's interference in U.S. electoral processes. Leave aside the question of whether Trump's cooperation with the Russians violated the law. He at least tacitly collaborated with a foreign intelligence operation against his country–sometimes in full public view. This started during the campaign, when he called upon the Russians to steal and release his opponent's emails, and has continued during his presidency, as he equivocates on whether foreign intervention occurred and smears intelligence professionals who stand by the facts. Meanwhile, the Republican Party has confirmed his nominees, doggedly pursued its agenda on tax reform and health care and attacked–of course–Hillary Clinton. Jonathan Rauch and Benjamin Wittes © 2018 Kwiple.com
Republicans say Patriotism is when we release classified intelligence data, methods and sources to the public Treason is when others do it  The Putin Posse — — — — —  Donald Trump, founder and motivator Devin Nunes (CA), memo writer Mike Conaway (TX) Tom Rooney (FL) Rick Crawford (AR) I. Ros-Lehtinen (FL) Trey Gowdy (SC) Elise Stefanik (NY) Will Hurd (TX) Chris Stewart (UT) Peter King (NY) Mike Turner (OH) Frank LoBiondo (NJ) Brad Wenstrup (OH) © 2018 Kwiple.com
Republicans say Pressuring intelligence analysts to provide evidence for our policies is change we believe in © 2017 Kwiple.com
Republicans say ’Tis a pity intelligence about Iraq was so bad © 2016 Kwiple.com
Treason Hee hee hee hee Vladimir Putin, snickering before verbally responding to a reporter at the Helsinski summit press conference who asked him, “Does the Russian government have any compromising material on president Trump or his family?” © 2018 Kwiple.com
 
Trumpists say I think spying did occur. Yes, I think spying did occur. William “Whitewash Willie” Barr, Trump's self-proclaimed Exonerator General, legitimizing conspiracy theories propular with Trumpists that his 2016 campaign was subjected to unlawful surveillance by the FBI and intelligence agencies as part of their investigation into Russian meddling in the election © 2019 Kwiple.com