A twice-indicted ex-president poses a national security risk unlike any this country has ever faced.
Don’t just take it from me. Here is a warning from Michael Hayden, the former director of both the Central Intelligence Agency and National Security Agency. Hayden served under Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama.
As Hayden explained in a recent political ad, “The president is supposed to keep our secrets secure, not show our secrets off … He had many top secret documents at Mar-a-Lago for more than a year. We don’t know who saw them, but we have to assume those documents were compromised. Trump must face consequences for his actions.”
The former CIA director has aphasia as a result of a stroke, making it difficult for him to speak. But due to the gravity of Trump’s alleged crimes, and the danger Trump poses to our national security, Hayden chose to speak out anyway.
Hayden isn’t the only retired four-star general speaking out against Trump these days. The New York Times reported that John Kelly, who served as Trump’s White House chief of staff, said in a sworn statement that when he was in the White House, Trump discussed having the IRS and other federal agencies potentially investigate his perceived enemies.
The people Trump targeted were Peter Strzok, whom you’ve seen on MSNBC and on my show, and Lisa Page, two FBI officials involved in investigating the Trump campaign’s ties to Russia.
Strzok was the lead agent in the FBI’s investigation into Russia, while Page was a former lawyer in the bureau. They were both removed from then-special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe after text messages critical of Trump became public.
The two officials — whom Trump viciously attacked while in office — filed lawsuits against the Justice Department. Page’s lawsuit alleges privacy violations, while Strzok argues that he was wrongfully terminated. Kelly’s assertions were disclosed in a statement that was filed in connection with those lawsuits.
“President Trump questioned whether investigations by the Internal Revenue Service or other federal agencies should be undertaken into Mr. Strzok and/or Ms. Page,” Kelly said in his statement, adding: “I do not know of President Trump ordering such an investigation. It appeared, however, that he wanted to see Mr. Strzok and Ms. Page investigated.”
The damning statement comes as Trump faces an unprecedented level of legal trouble as more Trump White House officials are alleging just how routine it was for the former president to put government secrets on display. It’s a pattern we’ve seen since at least 2017, when Trump reportedly revealed intelligence secrets to Kremlin officials he welcomed inside the Oval Office.
From loose lips to tweeting classified images, to flaunting his precious boxes filled with classified material as if they were prizes, the danger has never been so clear.
America’s very safety has been — and may still be — at the mercy of one man’s ego. And the fact that he could still become president? It is a truly terrifying thought.
This is an excerpt from Monday’s episode of “The ReidOut.” It has been slightly edited for length and clarity.
Joy-Ann Reid
Joy-Ann Reid is host of “The ReidOut” at 7 p.m. ET on MSNBC. “The ReidOut” features one-on-one conversations with politicians and newsmakers while addressing provocative political issues both inside and outside of the beltway.
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