In an alarming and contradictory move, President-elect Donald Trump has asked the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), a government agency that represents the deep state, to intervene in domestic security matters. This comes in the wake of incidents of violence committed by former army personnel.
President Trump's call
In a typically combative post on January 3, the president-elect accused the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Department of Justice (DOJ), and Democratic prosecutors as “incompetent and corrupt.” He said they focused on political attacks against him rather than protecting the American people from what he described as “violent scum” that permeated “every aspect of our government and our country itself.” He accused her of guessing.
This was followed by Trump's cryptic call for the CIA to intervene “now, before it's too late,” warning that the nation was on the brink of “collapse.”
This is, of course, the same institution known for orchestrating coups, enabling surveillance overreach, and wielding unlimited power behind the scenes. President Trump's presentation of the CIA as the savior of a crumbling nation not only clashes with anti-establishment rallying cries, but also raises serious questions about his commitment to accountability and justice, or lack thereof. cause.
Islamic extremists and immigrants
First of all, who are the “scum” that President Trump sees as a threat to the nation? Just before calling for the CIA's intervention, Trump pointed to “radical Islamic terrorism” and blamed it on President Joe Biden's open borders policy.
His story connects radical Islamism to recent attacks in New Orleans and Las Vegas, framing them as a direct result of lax immigration controls.
But the facts complicate President Trump's story. While there is no denying that open borders policies pose significant challenges for the United States, they are not directly linked to these specific attacks. The alleged perpetrators, Shamsud Din Jabbar and Matthew Libersberger, were both U.S. citizens with military backgrounds, not immigrants.
These incidents highlight a broader problem that President Trump's rhetoric overlooks: the growing involvement of individuals with military experience in ideologically motivated attacks. The vast majority of veterans and military personnel have served honorably. However, data shows a worrying increase in extremist activity among those with military ties.
According to the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses (START), cited by the Associated Press, extremist plots include a disproportionate number of military backgrounds. This is especially true for plots that involve mass casualties.
President Trump's emphasis on “radical Islamic terrorism” as a major threat oversimplifies a complex issue. This approach avoids responsibility for US institutions, including the military, to address extremist incidents within their ranks. Moreover, by framing the issue as simply one of immigration, President Trump risks stirring up public anxiety while ignoring deeper systemic causes. These include the destabilizing effects of an aggressive foreign policy that depletes U.S. resources and stokes anger at home and abroad.
How does the CIA get “involved”?
If the CIA were to act on President Trump's call to root out “scum” in the government and “the state itself,” it would be operating in a legal gray area. Its official mandate prohibits domestic surveillance, but such actions could circumvent these restrictions.
Most likely, within the Five Eyes (FVEY) international intelligence alliance, British intelligence services could continue to cooperate in surveillance activities against Americans. This approach would circumvent legal restrictions on domestic espionage by outsourcing domestic espionage to allies.
Additionally, government agencies will need to tap and partner with private technology companies like Palantir to analyze vast datasets and identify individuals who pose a threat. Palantir, co-founded and run by Peter Thiel, a close ally and donor to President Trump, currently works as a contractor for the CIA, FBI, and Department of Defense (DOD), and has long been known as the “all-knowing” and “all-seeing eye.” Recognized. about you,” and is already deeply involved in U.S. intelligence operations at home and abroad.
Operations could expand further, including covert infiltration of organizations, surveillance and profiling of government officials and military personnel, and expansion of cyber espionage capabilities.
Notably, profiling gained prominence during President Trump's first term under Attorney General Bill Barr. Barr advocated for “pre-crime” technology, which aims to predict and prevent criminal acts before they occur. The push for data-driven surveillance has laid the foundation for widespread anti-profiling measures. These methods have drawn heavy criticism for relying on biased algorithms and incomplete data. They also express serious concerns about the apparent violation of Fourth Amendment protections.
If the CIA employed similar tactics against Americans under the guise of public safety, it would deepen a system that prioritizes control over civil liberties.
The CIA's notorious history of overstepping its mandate adds to these concerns. From domestic espionage schemes like Operation Chaos in the 1960s and 1970s to involvement in international coups, the agency has repeatedly operated beyond its responsibilities and legalities.
CIA and Islamic extremists
During his first term, President Trump accused President Barack Obama of “creating ISIS” by withdrawing troops from Iraq, thereby creating a power vacuum that the extremist group quickly exploited. He is well known for his criticisms, and not without good reason.
But President Trump's current rhetoric ignores important historical factors. That is the CIA's role in forming the very extremist groups he denounces. Social media users were quick to point out the connection. “Every time they say 'Taliban,' 'Al Qaeda,' or 'ISIS,' my brain translates it as 'CIA/Mossad,'” one of them wrote.
The CIA has supported violent Islamist groups in the Middle East for decades. Most notably, it armed and trained groups to counter Soviet influence during the Cold War. One example is Operation Cyclone, which took place from 1979 to 1992. This secret plan involved arming and funding the Afghan Mujahideen in Afghanistan to resist Soviet invasion.
Beyond Afghanistan, the CIA worked with Islamist groups in other regions. In the 1950s and 1960s, it supported parts of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood to weaken the relationship between Gamal Abdel Nasser's socialist government and the Soviet Union. In the 1980s, the agency indirectly supported Islamist forces opposed to Syria's Soviet-aligned regime.
These alliances highlight a recurring flaw in U.S. foreign policy. Prioritizing short-term geopolitical goals often comes at the expense of long-term stability and ethical considerations. By collaborating with extremist groups, the CIA has frequently undermined the values of freedom and incited violence. This approach left civilians to bear the brunt of the resulting instability and eroded America's moral standing on the world stage.
Worse, these actions directly undermined America's security. Some groups empowered by CIA intervention became hostile to the United States. Examples include the Taliban and ISIS, which have perpetuated violence and terrorism.
CIA and false flag
Based on this troubling history, some commentators have linked current events to the Cold War-era CIA's Operation Gladio. Investigative journalist Whitney Webb is among those who have noted these similarities.
Operation Gladio relied on a secret network in Western Europe. These networks often organized acts of violence and staged false flag attacks attributed to extremist groups. These actions were aimed at manipulating political outcomes and suppressing opposition to the United States, and similar strategies could be reused today under the guise of fighting domestic terrorism. Webb warns.
Taken together, the CIA's history of empowering extremist forces and its role in orchestrating covert operations like Gladio reveals a recurring pattern of prioritizing power over principle, which threatens global stability. and devastating consequences for American values. So why would Mr. Trump, who built his platform on taking down the deep state, now trust one of its most notorious organizations?
