Gang of Eight briefed by intelligence chiefs on Russia bounty allegations

The country's top intelligence officials on Thursday held a classified briefing with congressional leaders amid demands for more information on the reports that Russian agents offered Taliban-linked militants in Afghanistan thousands of dollars in bounties for killing American troops.

Top intelligence officials, including CIA chief Director Gina Haspel and Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe, held the briefing Thursday afternoon with members of the so-called “Gang of Eight”: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and the top Republicans and Democrats on the two intelligence committees.

The Capitol Hill meetings come as President Trump has been under increasing pressure to provide answers about the U.S. response to Russia or the lack of one. But the president has continued to downplay the intelligence, calling it a “hoax” and “fake news” designed to damage him and the Republican Party.

Trump also has not directly addressed the substance of the reports nor whether the U.S. has or will respond to Russia.

Just for sake of discussion, assume the report is true — then the very next question is NOT “how soon can we impeach Trump?”

Rather it’s “When did this first start and what did previous Presidents do about it?”

Is Russia the ONLY country to do such things?
What did we do to those other countries?

Of course, most likely it’s not true.

Lest we forget the US armed Osama bin Lauden when he was killing Russian soldiers in Afghanistan. The Soviet Union armed North Korean and North Vietnamese soldiers to kill Americans. Israel attacked the USS Liberty, killing American sailors. During the Cold War CIA operatives killed Russian and eastern European operatives and those nations killed our operatives. Saudi Arabians, possibly with the knowledge of the Saudi government executed attacks on the US homeland on 9/11/2001, killing 3000 US citizens. Competition and conflict between nations is not pretty.

Lets say the Russians did fund a bounty on US soldiers. What is the appropriate response? Is that morally different from the US giving Osama bin Lauden’s freedom fighters shoulder fired missiles to shoot down Russian helicopters? What should the Soviet response have been at the time?

What if Trump has responded already but there are national security reasons for keeping quiet? What if that action was effective but Trump knows if he makes it public there will be escalation in response which may cost the lives of hundreds or thousands if Americans?

Why don’t some Republican Senators come out and ask these questions of the press and their Democrat colleagues?

The Democrats are in all out war against the President. They are playing with grenades at an oil refinery. The GOP members of Congress are in hiding seemingly content to see the Republic collapse.

"Lest we forget the US armed Osama bin Lauden when he was killing Russian soldiers in Afghanistan."

Right, thanks for a great post.
You completed a thought I was just beginning.
And all that is just what's known publicly.

My guess would be that researchers within various intel agencies could quickly come up with any number of highly classified reports along those same lines.

"The Democrats are in all out war against the President.
They are playing with grenades at an oil refinery.
The GOP members of Congress are in hiding seemingly content to see the Republic collapse."

Well said, but I don't see it collapsing -- seems too much like the 60s & early 70s, which we did (barely) survive.
Enough Rs found enough backbone to eventually end it.

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