John Ratcliffe, the president-elect’s pick for CIA director, on Wednesday said the U.S. faces “what may be the most challenging national security environment in our nation’s history.” He rattled off what he perceives as the most pressing issues: China, the border, the war in Ukraine and risk of nuclear fallout, Iran, North Korea and “increasing coordination” among America’s adversaries. Mr. Ratcliffe, who served as director of national intelligence (DNI) in the first Trump administration, promised to rededicate the CIA to its intelligence-gathering mission. “We will collect intelligence, especially human intelligence, in every corner of the globe, no matter how dark or difficult. We will produce insightful, objective, all-source analysis, never allowing political or personal biases to cloud our judgment or infect our products,” Mr. Ratcliffe told the Senate Intelligence Committee. “We will conduct covert action at the direction of the president, going places no one else can go and doing things no one else can do. To the brave CIA officers listening around the world, if all of this sounds like what you signed up for, then buckle up and get ready to make a difference. If it doesn’t, then it’s time to find a new line of work.” Watch more at c-span.org
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