Ex-CIA analyst resigns rather than serve Trump administration

A longtime Central Intelligence Agency analyst is speaking out on his decision to resign, after more than a decade of service, because of the Trump administration.

“Despite working proudly for Republican and Democratic presidents, I reluctantly concluded that I cannot in good faith serve this administration as an intelligence professional,” Ned Price, a former intelligence analyst and National Security Council spokesman, wrote in a Washington Post op-ed published Monday.

Price, who worked in the agency under President George W. Bush and President Obama, said he did not make the decision lightly.

{mosads}”There was no greater reward than having my analysis presented to the president and seeing it shape events. Intelligence informing policy — this is how the system is supposed to work,” he wrote.

He said Donald Trump’s remarks as a presidential candidate throughout the campaign “suggested that he intended to take a different approach.”

“I watched in disbelief when, during the third presidential debate, Trump casually cast doubt on the high-confidence conclusion of our 17 intelligence agencies, released that month, that Russia was behind the hacking and release of election-related emails.”

Price criticized Trump’s visit to the CIA headquarters on his first official day as president. He blasted the attempt to repair the relationship between CIA officials and the candidate as “undone by his ego and bluster.”

“Standing in front of a memorial to the CIA’s fallen officers, he seemed to be addressing the cameras and reporters in the room, rather than the agency personnel in front of them, bragging about his inauguration crowd the previous day,” Price wrote.

During his meeting at the CIA last month, Trump blamed the media for his disagreements with the intelligence community. 

“They are among the most dishonest human beings on earth,” the president said. “And they sort of made it sound like I had a feud with the intelligence community. And just want to let you know that the reason you’re the No. 1 stop is exactly the opposite.”