FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Hart for Congress Committee
The CIA is out of control. The spy agency has admitted to conducting a covert hacking and file destruction operation against the Senate Intelligence Oversight Committee that was investigating allegations of prior illegal CIA acts. The CIA’s conduct constitutes a blatant and unacceptable act of intimidation against the critical civilian oversight of its operations. As CIA Director Brennan has confessed to hacking the Senate Oversight Committee computers, probable cause exists to believe the CIA has engaged in criminal and unconstitutional attacks on the very core of our representative government. This is unacceptable.

President Obama should decisively address this constitutional crisis by firing both CIA Director Brennan and Brennan’s boss, James Clapper, the Director of National Intelligence (DNI). Security clearances for both men should be revoked. The president should also immediately endorse a robust Justice Department investigation, publicly granting that agency complete authority to pursue all leads wherever they go. The CIA’s attack on the Senate and the Constitution is an attack on democracy that cannot, and must not, be tolerated.

In addition to directing this black bag job against the Senate Oversight Committee, Brennan is known for his aggressive promotion of illegal torture under the Bush administration. DNI’s James Clapper, who as Brennan’s boss knew or should have known of the CIA’s attack on the Senate computers, previously made his disregard of the rule of law known when he admitted to falsely telling a Congressional committee in March 2013 that the NSA does not collect data on millions of Americans. A crime committed with impunity up to now.

President Obama needs to decide who controls America’s spy agencies—the people via the President and Congressional oversight, or the “free from oversight” unelected directors of those spy agencies. The integrity of the American political system is at stake.

MORE INFORMATION: Bob Hart 614-301-8737