- Also: security clearance – the coin of the realm
- Make that “the coin of the swamp”
- Lou Dobbs holds forth
FORMER CHAIRMAN OF THE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF “CONCERNED” ABOUT TRUMP’S THREAT TO ‘FREEDOM OF SPEECH”
“I am concerned about the whole issue of free speech. And as long as John is not revealing classified information that he shouldn’t, then I certainly think he has a right to speak,” Mike Mullen, retired US Navy admiral and former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff told Fox News on Sunday.
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You all remember Chairman Mullen and his eloquence in the aftermath of the Ft. Hood massacre, don’t you?
In a speech another Obama genius, Marie Harf, could have written for him, Mullen opined that the real problem with Islamic extremism is some really “uneducated” mullahs!
He added that besides educating those Mullahs in the real meaning of the Quran, teaching young Muslims to read will pretty much prevent “the despair that “leads a child…into the arms of Al Qaeda and the Taliban”.
The erudite Admiral Mullen suggested the solution even before Marie Harf did…the lack of jobs is the real cause of terrorism. (You can do your own interpretation of Chairman Mueller’s remarks as presented below.)
At any rate, Mike Mullen is obviously not the “go to guy” intellectually on any issue.
“The harder you chase leaks, the more leaks there will be,”
Once again, Mullen just repeats what he’s heard from some of his leftist friends (thinking about this guy as Chairman of the JCOS is really disheartening): “I am concerned about the whole issue of free speech. I certainly think ..(Brennan).. has the right to speak.”
Hey Mike! Sounds very patriotic. However, Who, when, or how has anyone prevented daffy John Brennan from speaking, even though he has nothing true or of value to say!
Again, I say, guys like this were leading our military…and Intelligence services??!! I wish you were kidding!!!!! DLH
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“”Brennan received some support on Sunday from Mike Mullen, a retired U.S. Navy admiral and former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who said Trump’s threat to revoke the security clearances of those who have been critical of him is a sign that the president is “creating a list of political enemies.”
Mullen said that while Trump has the authority to pull the security clearances of former national intelligence and other officials, his doing so is “incredibly problematic.”
“It immediately brings back the whole concept of the ‘enemies list’ under President (Richard) Nixon,” Mullen said in an appearance on “Fox News Sunday,” adding that it was also reminiscent of the anti-communist crusade led by Joseph McCarthy in the 1950s.
“Mullen said that he does not support Brennan being as critical of Trump as he has been but believes that the former CIA director and others should not have to fear that they will be stripped of their security clearances because of their criticism.
“I am concerned about the whole issue of free speech. And as long as John is not revealing classified information that he shouldn’t, then I certainly think he has a right to speak,” Mullen said.
2010 article by Bridget Johnson writing at The Hill
Mullen: Broadly tackling extremism will undermine ‘uneducated’ mullahs (excerpt)
The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Friday that new ways of deterrence that address those factors that make individuals vulnerable to coercion were essential in tackling the threats of the 21st century.
Adm. Mike Mullen, in a speech at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution, said Hamas, Hezbollah, the Taliban and al-Qaida can be deterred by the threat of retaliation, but efforts to attack the basis of extremism were essential through support of education and development.
“Attacking the humiliation, the hopelessness, the illiteracy and abject poverty which lie at the core of the attraction to extremist thought will do more to turn the tide against terrorism than anything else,” the chairman said. “We can continue to hunt and kill their leaders, and we will. But when a person learns to read, he enters a gateway toward independent education and thought. He becomes more capable, more employable, and enjoys a sense of purpose in his life.
“He will understand the Quran for what it is and not merely what his mullah tells him it is, who is equally uneducated,” Mullen continued. “He can raise his children to a higher standard of living than the one he knew, an aspiration shared by parents around the world. And his wife will help him prevent the despair that might lead a child of theirs into the arms of al-Qaida or the Taliban.”
Lou Dobbs holds forth:
