WASHINGTON, D.C. – In response to a Wall Street Journal report that says President-elect Donald Trump is moving to weaken the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine), a member of the Senate Intelligence and Armed Services Committees, released the following statement:

“Congress created the DNI based on the careful study of intelligence coordination failures that led to the terrorist attacks on 9/11,” Senator King said. “This a perilous moment in history, and it would be a serious mistake if we moved toward less coordination, when, in reality, increased coordination is needed now more than ever before. Like many, I am open to considering reforms, but dismantling or weakening the DNI would be a truly dangerous decision.”

In November 2016, Senator King and Senator James Lankford (R-Okla.) joined together to send a letter to President-elect Donald Trump urging him to prioritize the nomination of the next DNI and to select an experienced, collaborative individual who can advise on the nominations of other intelligence agency leaders.

In that same letter, Senators King and Lankford emphasized how a successful DNI makes the intelligence community “more efficient, more collaborative, limits redundancies, and advances seamless information sharing across our intelligence agencies.”

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