Does Trump Want To Get Rid of Post for Director of National Intelligence?

Feb. 20, 2020 (EIRNS)—President Donald Trump has named Richard Grenell as Acting Director of National Intelligence (DNI), making clear that he is not proposing him for the permanent position, but only Acting. When Dan Coats was fired in August, Trump appointed deputy director Joseph Maguire as Acting DNI, but Maguire is required by law to step down in March.

The question is, does Trump even intend to appoint a permanent DNI? After James Clapper’s treasonous term, perhaps Trump wants to get rid of the position altogether—it was only created by George W. Bush in 2004, to coordinate the 17 intelligence agencies in the government following the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. Trump is already in the process of cutting the bloated National Security Council back to its original size (Bush doubled it from 100 to 200, and Obama doubled that again to 400).

Grenell, now the U.S. Ambassador to Germany, has no intelligence experience, and has not run a major agency, but he is likely to be very loyal to Trump.  He was U.S. spokesman at the UN from 2001-2008 under four Ambassadors, including John Bolton. In Germany he ruffled feathers by undiplomatically criticizing the German government over immigration, Huawei, funding for NATO, and more.

He will be the first openly gay member of cabinet. Since the Senate approved him as Ambassador, he does not need to be approved again to serve as acting DNI.