1. The fact that the DNI is abusing all instruments of his power and serving as a trump campaign surrogate is a metaphor for how Trump has treated intelligence from day 1: as PR material.

That’s not just un-intelligent it’s dangerous.

2. Why you may ask? Well for starters we have no reason to believe that the DNI is forthcoming about threats / assessments that don’t jibe w Trump’s political needs. Censoring intel to assuage Trump’s ego means policy makers and the public may not get a full picture.

3. Plus he has trumped up material that suits Trump’s TPs - even when it should have a Russian warning label attached.

4. Collection priorities may be skewed toward what Trump needs for his campaign machine vs what we need to keep us safe

5. And assessments that don’t match Trump’s spin machines needs may be censored or neutered.

6. The DNI talking about politics is just a signal to the world that all “intel” has a political filter permanently applied under this President.

7. Our intel partners probably don’t trust Ratcliffe bc he’s looks like Trump’s political errand boy - they won’t want to put their own sources and methods at Risk

8. Our adversaries likely think if they can put out “Intel” that suits Trumps campaign needs Ratcliffe will release it / elevate it even if it’s part of a disinfo attack

9. This gross politicization of intel could turn off qualified Americans from applying to serve in the IC. And it could lead existing IC personnel to leave.

10. It appears that Ratcliffe doesn’t care about the adverse effects he’s having on our country’s security.

11. How unpatriotic can you get?

12. A DNI should not be using the media to do the President's political errands.