Thursday, Nov. 20 — Virginia’s U.S. Senator Mark Warner, the ranking member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, delivered a scathing speech on the Senate floor today warning of dire consequences for the wholesale diminishment of U.S. intelligence capabilities under the Trump administration. They are making America far less safe, he warned, at a time when its adversaries are stepping up their activities against it.

      Warner said, “These threats are real, persistent, and in many cases, growing. I’m deeply concerned about the Trump administration’s reckless actions – actions that have left our  country more vulnerable than at any point in recent memory.”

He went on, “Just last month, FBI Director Kash Patel testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee that the  FBI has experienced a 300 percent increase in terrorist cases opened this year alone…on top of a  30 percent increase in foreign espionage cases.”

In more excerpts from his speech today, Warner said, 

“At the Senate Intelligence Committee’s Annual Threat Assessment hearing, Director Gabbard  reiterated that foreign terrorists remain intent on striking the United States and our citizens…that  a range of cyber and intelligence actors continue to target our critical infrastructure…and that  state adversaries possess weapons capable of hitting U.S. territory and disabling vital U.S.  systems. Indeed, in an interview earlier this month, Director Gabbard repeated that “terrorism  continues to pose the greatest – both short- and long-term – threat to the American people.” Whatever one thinks of the individuals delivering them, the assessments themselves leave no  ambiguity about the dangers confronting the United States. 

“And yet, in spite of those clear and present threats, the Trump administration has chosen a course  of action that weakens our defenses and leaves Americans more vulnerable to the very risks its  own officials have publicly described. 

“Since Inauguration Day, the president and his hand-picked FBI Director, Kash Patel, have forced  out thousands of experienced agents for reasons that appear more political than professional, like refusing to lie about who won the 2020 election, or for prosecuting the violent criminals who  attacked Capitol Police officers on January 6, or simply for being friendly with someone critical  of the president.  

“Alarming court filings suggest that even Director Patel has privately acknowledged that many of  these actions may be illegal… yet justified them by saying that his position depended on carrying  them out. The list of those purged reads like a Who’s Who of the Bureau’s most decorated public servants. 

“Thousands of FBI agents… all forced out, not because they failed to do their jobs, but because  they refused to bend the knee to partisan politics. And as if that weren’t alarming enough, in recent months the FBI has reassigned between 25 and  45 percent of its agents who handle counterterrorism, cyber, espionage, child sexual abuse, and  other critical missions… to immigration enforcement. Data reveals a 33percent decrease in the hours spent on child exploitation cases, compared to previous years. 

“Firing agents who investigate terrorists, foreign spies, cyber hackers, and child predators does  not make America safer, especially when the president’s own intelligence officials warn, publicly  and repeatedly, of the many threats facing our nation.

“Cyber Command, which under General Paul Nakasone disrupted Russian troll farms in 2017,  lacks a permanent Commander. The Foreign Influence Task Force – stood up by President  Trump in his first term to share information with state and local partners about foreign  interference in our elections – has been disbanded entirely. 

“And all the while, the administration’s own intelligence reporting warns – and I quote:  

“Beijing will continue to expand its coercive and subversive malign influence activities to  weaken the United States…[and] is likely to feel emboldened to use malign influence more  regularly in coming years, particularly as it fields AI to improve its capabilities.” 

“Moscow’s malign influence activities will continue for the foreseeable future and will almost  certainly increase in sophistication and volume.” 

“Iran’s growing expertise and willingness to conduct aggressive cyber operations make it a  major threat to the security of U.S. networks and data.” 

“The pattern is unmistakable: political loyalty is now valued over competence, and the very  institutions created to protect Americans are being dismantled before our eyes.

“The next attack will not wait for Congress to act. The next threat will not ask permission. And  when it comes, the consequences will not be measured in polling numbers or election results.  They will be measured in lives lost, infrastructure damaged, and national security compromised.”