In spook-speak, "I believe" means there is no direct evidence, no "smoking gun."
In Intelligence, it's almost unheard of that all the facts are known. But it's important that your consumer knows how much of your product is fact-based and how much is reading between the lines, so they convey that in their jargon.
If there were "proof," if his certitude had been absolute, he'd have said, "Yes, they were involved" and left it at that.
But he didn't.
If he had said, "I think..," that would have meant the preponderance of available information points to that conclusion. Not absolute certainty, but close.
He used a weasel-word, which left himself a margin of error. "Believe" means that even he isn't certain. And anybody in the Intel community would have read it that way.
Maybe he doesnt want to die?
It didn’t have to be the entire CIA - it could have just been some rogue faction.
Thank you for inserting some common sense to what is always the most crackpot discussion on this declining forum.
“In spook-speak, “I believe” means there is no direct evidence, no “smoking gun.””
In legal-speak, he would have to say “I believe.” If he said definitely “yes” he would have to present evidence, which he cannot.
Most of us can’t produce evidence of much of what we did in our personal lives last month, but we can believe what we did.
But he also knows that going further would identify him, and that using weasel-words would be seen exactly as you say.
If he was identified by the surety of his knowledge he would just disappear, never to be seen again or have a 1” column that so and so had a tragic accident.
It is not possible to accurately parse his words given his position - any one else you’d be right.
But the larger issue is: does one trust TC to be honest here, and not making the whole up to drive ratings?
It is an entertainment show after all.
Then there is the aspect that TC’s “friend” Mike Pompao also refused to release the pages when he was CIA director. More damning is MP’s refusal to discuss the issue on air with TC.
More questions than answers.
Maybe it is all fake and the whole show is being run by space aliens - prove me wrong.