Classified intelligence in the US is a political weapon

John Ratcliffe, the Trumpite director of national intelligence, has caused a political uproar by declaring in a letter to the Senate Intelligence Committee that, in future, secret briefings on foreign interference in the 2020 presidential election will be given in writing and not by witnesses appearing before the committee. In other words no searching questions allowed. The reason for making this decision comes right at the end of the letter to Senator Marco Rubio, acting Republican chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, and Senator Mike Warner, the leading Democratic member of the committee. It says this step has been taken to stop the leaking of classified briefings on the election to the media. It is true to say that in Washington there is no such thing as secret intelligence. One way or another, classified material gets into the papers and it's more often than not as a result of "Congressional sources" revealing all to their favourite reporters. It has been going on for as long as I can remember. Intelligence is a big political weapon. It can be used by both sides in the political game to exploit their particular views. In this case, Ratcliffe has taken action because the most sensitive issue right now, two months before polling day on November 3, is foreign meddling, particularly by Moscow which seems intent on trying to make sure Trump is reelected. Secret briefings on this issue have made big headlines in the papers. Personally if members of a committee which is privileged to receive classified briefings from America's top intelligence chiefs then leave the chamber to ring their newspaper contacts that's a clear case of irresponsible, even unlawful, politicising of an issue affecting national security. But this is Washington. This is what happens and has always happened. Also, it is right that the public should know exactly what is going on vis a vis the Russians and other possible meddlers before they vote on November 3. But this surely can be done in unclassified statements from the White House or the intelligence community. The danger of senators leaking what they have heard in classified briefings is that they might reveal something which gives away to the enemy, whoever the enemy is, what the US does to get its information, including its secret sources. The problem is that if Ratcliffe is now only going to allow written briefings the contents could still and will still be leaked to the media, with the added political twist no doubt. Basically everyone by now knows that the Russians want Trump to have another four years and are doing all kinds of social media, cyber and propaganda stuff to persuade the voters to go for Trump and not Joe Biden. Ratcliffe's decision to stop direct briefings to the Senate and House intelligence committees on this issue only serves to give the impression that he is trying to suppress what is going on. Whether that is true or not.