Hayden: Relationship between Trump, national security community ‘dangerously close to being permanently broken’

Former CIA Director Michael Hayden said Sunday that he thinks the relationship between the national security community and President Trump is on the edge of shattering.

“It’s dangerously close to being permanently broken, it is badly injured right now,” Hayden told CNN. 

Hayden said that it’s been increasingly hard for the intelligence community to keep itself apolitical when the administration behaves as it does.{mosads}

“If we’re back in our old agencies, we’re trying to say to our workforce: ‘We have nothing to do with what John Brennan says on TV and we have nothing to do with what the president has done in response,’ ” Hayden said, ” ‘We’ve got our basic lane, we’ve got to be blocking and tackling.’ “

“But that has to be harder and harder each day as the administration takes these kinds of actions,” Hayden continued.

Tensions between the intelligence community and the Trump administration have intensified since the president revoked former CIA Director John Brennan’s security clearance last Wednesday.

Hayden signed a letter with over a dozen high-level professionals in the intelligence community last Friday condemning the administration’s decision. 

Hayden has long been a harsh critic of the administration.

When CNN asked if Hayden would be proud to have his security clearance revoked by the Trump administration, he replied that he would.

“And frankly, if his not revoking my clearance gave the impression that I somehow moved my commentary to a direction more acceptable to the White House, I would find that very disappointing and frankly unacceptable,” Hayden said.