NY TIMES: Trump Putting Steve Bannon’s Friend In Charge Of Review Of Intelligence Agencies
Trump plans to assign New York billionaire and Steve Bannon’s friend Stephen Feinberg to lead a broad review of American intelligence agencies, according to a NY Times report.
According to The Times, Feinberg’s potential role has met “fierce resistance” in the intelligence community – fearing this could “curtail their independence and reduce the flow of information that contradicts the president’s worldview.”
There hasn’t been an announcement and the Trump administration hasn’t commented, but Feinberg allegedly told his company’s shareholders that he is in discussions to join the Trump administration.
Bringing Feinberg into the administration to conduct the review is seen as a way of injecting a Trump loyalist into an area that Trump views with suspicion. But top intelligence officials fear that Mr. Feinberg is being groomed for a high position in one of the intelligence agencies.
And to add to the news, Feinberg’s only experience with national security matters is his firm’s, Cerberus Capital Management, stakes in a private security company and two gun makers. So basically, none at all.
This report comes just two days after National Security Advisor Michael Flynn resigned because of ties to Russia.
