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Home Front: Politix
Former CIA director Burns calls Trump firings of U.S. workers ‘’a war on...expertise’’
2025-08-21
God grant us surcease from that kind of expertise.
[Reuters] William Burns, former CIA director and veteran U.S. diplomat, on Wednesday issued a scathing rebuke of the Trump administration's mass firings of federal workers, saying they are aimed at stifling dissenting views and will harm U.S. security.

"Under the guise of reform, you all got caught in the crossfire of a retribution campaign - of a war on public service and expertise," Burns wrote in a "Letter to America's Discarded Public Servants" published in The Atlantic magazine.
Crossfire, the man said. Is that one of those dogwhistle thingies so popular in leftwing circles?
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Burns was CIA director under Democratic former President Joe Biden, and a foreign service officer. He served three Democratic and three Republican presidents. His career included stints as U.S. ambassador to Russia and deputy secretary of State.
Taking aim at U.S. President Donald Trump's sweeping purge of federal workers, including State Department staff and U.S. intelligence officers, Burns said that civil servants recognize the need for serious government reforms.

"But there is a smart way and a dumb way to tackle reform, a humane way and an intentionally traumatizing way," he said. "This is not about reform. It's about retribution. It's about breaking people and breaking institutions by sowing fear and mistrust throughout our government."
They keep saying retribution. It does not mean what they say it means.
Related:
William Burns 09/12/2024 Hamas says ready to implement ceasefire without new conditions
William Burns 09/08/2024 German FM says 'purely military approach' not the solution in Gaza; CIA, MI6 urge Israeli ‘compromises’ to get hostages back, detailed ceasefire proposal imminent
William Burns 08/30/2024 'Cleaning Up the Crypto Market.' Why the US Is Up in arms about Pavel Durov

Posted by:Besoeker

#13  Considering most are bloated behemoths... and that was the take after 9/11 and it has only gotten worse... go for it.

Fire them all
Posted by: DarthVader   2025-08-21 16:59  

#12  Tulsi Gabbard announces plans to cut intelligence staff by half and double their collective IQ?

Because none of us are as dumb as all of us.
Posted by: SteveS   2025-08-21 11:22  

#11  If they are working against us to the benefit of our enemies, I'd say they started the war.
Posted by: Silentbrick   2025-08-21 11:11  

#10  Tulsi Gabbard announces plans to cut intelligence staff by half and double their collective IQ?
Posted by: Grom the Affective   2025-08-21 10:14  

#9  Tulsi Gabbard announces plans to cut intelligence staff by half

"Those in the Intelligence Community who betray their oath to the Constitution and put their own interests ahead of the interests of the American people have broken the sacred trust they promised to uphold."
Posted by: Skidmark   2025-08-21 10:12  

#8  #6 One of the problems with leaving any large organization is thinking that the organization will miss you when you're gone.
Posted by ed in texas


Yup. If you believe that, go on a 3-4 week vacation and see if it collapses
Posted by: Frank G   2025-08-21 09:30  

#7  Ha! No truer words ever spoken. "Large organization".....seven or more people.
Posted by: Besoeker   2025-08-21 08:21  

#6  One of the problems with leaving any large organization is thinking that the organization will miss you when you're gone.
Posted by: ed in texas   2025-08-21 08:14  

#5  You mean when you missed the collapse of the Soviet Union or you bombed the Chinese Embassy in Yugoslavia or Saddam's invasion of Kuwait or....
Posted by: Procopius2k   2025-08-21 08:04  

#4  /\ Burn's career matches the rise of the weaponization of the CIA. What he calls expertise, I would call corruption.

But they are so much wiser than we commoners.

Posted by: Besoeker   2025-08-21 07:41  

#3  I enjoy watching the fake empathy from people with no empathy for those not aligned politically.
Posted by: Airandee   2025-08-21 06:36  

#2  an intentionally traumatizing way

I voted for that
Posted by: Frank G   2025-08-21 05:46  

#1  Burn's career matches the rise of the weaponization of the CIA. What he calls expertise, I would call corruption. We don’t need intelligence professionals running disinformation ops in CONUS. If he still has a clearance, I would like to see his removed.
Posted by: Super Hose   2025-08-21 05:42  

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