Leon Panetta Expresses 'Concern' About Trump Skipping Intelligence Briefings
- 7 years ago
During an interview with CBS on Sunday, Leon Panetta commented on reports that Donald Trump hadn't attended many intelligence briefings since his win.
About a week ago, reports surfaced that Donald Trump had not attended many intelligence briefings since his win.
The Washington Post noted, "President-elect Donald Trump has received two classified intelligence briefings since his surprise election victory earlier this month, a frequency that is notably lower — at least so far — than that of his predecessors, current and former U.S. officials said. "
Many media outlets covered the news including The Verge, with a headline, "Donald Trump is skipping intelligence briefings but has time to block people on Twitter ."
Former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta commented on the issue during a Sunday interview on CBS' "Face the Nation." He said, "...one of the concerns I have right now is that this president is not getting his intelligence briefings."
Panetta also noted, “If you’re president of the United States, you better be in touch on a daily basis with your intelligence briefers...so that you have an understanding as to...what’s happening in the world, what are the crises you have to pay attention to, and what steps do you have to take in order to deal with those crises?”
While many experts have expressed similar concerns, not all agree on the level of concern. NBC News notes, "a senior intelligence official cautioned that it was too early to gauge the significance of Trump's sparse briefing schedule, given that he is in the middle of his transition process."
About a week ago, reports surfaced that Donald Trump had not attended many intelligence briefings since his win.
The Washington Post noted, "President-elect Donald Trump has received two classified intelligence briefings since his surprise election victory earlier this month, a frequency that is notably lower — at least so far — than that of his predecessors, current and former U.S. officials said. "
Many media outlets covered the news including The Verge, with a headline, "Donald Trump is skipping intelligence briefings but has time to block people on Twitter ."
Former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta commented on the issue during a Sunday interview on CBS' "Face the Nation." He said, "...one of the concerns I have right now is that this president is not getting his intelligence briefings."
Panetta also noted, “If you’re president of the United States, you better be in touch on a daily basis with your intelligence briefers...so that you have an understanding as to...what’s happening in the world, what are the crises you have to pay attention to, and what steps do you have to take in order to deal with those crises?”
While many experts have expressed similar concerns, not all agree on the level of concern. NBC News notes, "a senior intelligence official cautioned that it was too early to gauge the significance of Trump's sparse briefing schedule, given that he is in the middle of his transition process."