This morning, I spoke with the country’s former top career intelligence officer, Sue Gordon. She served as Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence from 2017 to 2019. Before that, she was Deputy Director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and spent more than 25 years at the CIA.
We talked about President Donald Trump’s scheduled meeting with Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday, how China remains our largest threat despite the distractions, and what recent declassifications have meant for the U.S. intelligence community.
Sue also told me that she had considered running for president, until she was derailed by a cancer diagnosis. “I’m worried about us,” she said. “I don’t understand all of my friends who are Republican in the House and Senate who are being entirely different from what I know them to be. We are in a fight for this amazing thing that we have, and so I was going to try and do my part even though I’m totally not worthy. I just couldn’t imagine not doing my part. Now I’ve got a slightly different fight to fight.”
Our early morning chat came before her latest chemo treatment. More of her reflections and analysis in the conversation. And you can follow Sue’s podcast, Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence with Sue Gordon.
