MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
The director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, is cutting almost half of the staff in her office, calling it, quote, "bloated and inefficient," unquote. Gabbard said Wednesday that she is reducing the workforce by more than 40% and cutting the budget by more than $700 million. Earlier this week, she also announced that she was revoking the security clearances of a group of 37 current and former U.S. officials. She posted a memo on social media saying she was doing this at the president's direction and accused these 37 people, without evidence, of using intelligence for political or personal gain.
Our next guest says he learned his name was on the list of 37 by way of a text from a friend. Joel Willett is an Army veteran and a former CIA officer who was detailed to the White House Situation Room in 2014 and 2015, and he's with us now. Good morning, Mr. Willett. Thanks for joining us.
JOEL WILLETT: Hey, and thank you so much for having me.
MARTIN: Have you received any official communication from the Trump administration about the revocation of your security clearance?
WILLETT: I have not. I signed off of Twitter 2 1/2 years ago when Elon Musk purchased the platform. And so had it not been for a friend paying attention on that platform who then texted me about it, I would still have no idea.
MARTIN: So nothing from them officially - no letter, no nothing?
WILLETT: No. I - you know, I think, consistent with others who have been through this over the past, you know, seven months with this administration, I'm sure that notice is forthcoming. But as we speak, I have not received it.
MARTIN: Do you have a theory about why?
WILLETT: I have a few. And primarily, a week ago, my name surfaced in the press as a potential candidate for Senate in Kentucky. And it appears to me the correlation of these two events, you know, can't be overlooked. This appears to be an attempt by an administration to weaponize the government against people that it sees as political opponents.
MARTIN: So, you know, as a private citizen, you've been critical of President Trump in published op-eds and commentaries. And one of your criticisms is that he and other members of his administration have politicized intelligence. And when you say that, I'm interested in what you mean because that is DNI Gabbard's stated reason for the people whose clearances she revoked - is that they are politicizing intelligence. So how do you respond to that?
WILLETT: I think one of Donald Trump's original sins was, the day after his first inauguration, standing in front of the Memorial Wall in CIA headquarters and, you know, questioning the assessments and the motives and the intentions of the intelligence community because he did not like what it was telling him about Russia's interference in the 2016 election. So I think this is an administration that has shown a propensity to challenge those who are supposed to speak truth to power, be they within the intelligence community or as private citizens.
MARTIN: So security clearances grant access to sensitive government information. They're often used by former officials to advise successors. They can be a precondition for employment in certain jobs in the private sector, such as in defense and in aerospace. You haven't worked in government since 2015, so how does this loss of access affect you?
WILLETT: Yeah, I won't comment in depth on it. But, yes, there are some employment implications for me. But I haven't been in government, as you pointed out, for quite some time. Nor was I in government in any capacity or even in industry with a security clearance in 2019, which seems to be, you know, a time period that the administration is focused on and - as it relates to the 37 names on that list.
MARTIN: Well, you weren't involved - I guess, to - more to - to be more specific, you weren't involved in any of the information about - what the president is very upset about, the whole question of whether there was some Russian interference in the election. That didn't cover that time frame. So before we let you go, what effect do public revocations such as this one, without, as we said, any evidence to accompany them - what effect do you think this is having on the intelligence community?
WILLETT: Yeah, I think it's going to continue to send a chilling effect to those within the intelligence community about, you know, what they are allowed to say, what truth they are allowed to speak to power today. And I think for people like me who have been out of government for some time, who have issues with the way this administration conducts itself, it's a threat to continue to go after your livelihood and your reputation. So I think it will have a chilling effect on dissent and people speaking out.
MARTIN: That's Joel Willett. He's an Army veteran and a former CIA officer who was detailed to the White House Situation Room in 2014 and 2015. Mr. Willett, thanks so much for your time.
Thank you, Michel. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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