WASHINGTON, D.C. – During a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) pressed Representative Mike Pompeo, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, telling him that his “primary role is to speak truth to the highest levels of power in this country.”

“The great foreign policy mistakes of my lifetime – Vietnam, the Bay of Pigs, and Iraq – all were based in one way or another on bad intelligence or, more accurately, intelligence that was tailored to fit the demands of the policymakers. You can’t read the histories of those decisions without coming to that conclusion,” Senator King said. “There is no more intimidating spot on this Earth than the Oval Office. Will you commit to giving the Commander in Chief, the President, unpleasant news that may be inconsistent with his policy preference based upon the best intelligence that the CIA can develop?”

Representative Pompeo committed to Senator King that he would deliver the work done by the men and women of the CIA “in a manner that is straight up and forward” to both the President and to policymakers, like those of the Senate and House Intelligence Committees.

            “I just hope that you will hold onto your commitment today because it’s not going to be easy, but your primary role is going to be to speak truth to the highest level of power in this country,” Senator King later continued.

Senator King also made reference to the unsubstantiated allegations in media reports of contact between the Trump campaign and the Russian government, and pressed Representative Pompeo on whether or not he would explore those allegations and, if he determined there were valid, then refer the findings to the FBI. Representative Pompeo promised to pursue the facts “wherever they take us.”

Additionally, Senator King pressed the nominee on whether or not he agreed with past statements by the President-elect’s incoming National Security Advisor, General Michael Flynn, that the CIA has become politicized. Senator King also questioned Representative Pompeo about a tweet he sent last year in which he cited Wikileaks as a credible source of information.

During a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing today, Senator King also questioned retired General James Mattis, the President-elect’s nominee for Secretary of Defense. To watch Senator King’s questioning of General Mattis, click HERE. Following the hearing, Senator King voted in favor of a carefully-crafted provision that would grant a one-time exception to allow General Mattis to serve as Defense Secretary.

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