Outgoing CIA chief rips into Trump over tweets, Russia

Outgoing CIA Director John Brennan ripped into Donald Trump on Sunday for "talking and tweeting" about possibly easing sanctions against Russia, saying the president-elect lacks a full understanding of the threat Moscow poses to the United States. "I think he has to be mindful that he does not have a full appreciation and understanding of what the implications are of going down that road," Brennan said on "Fox News Sunday," a show Trump routinely watches.

The tainted heart of America’s Golden Boy

The US presidential election was barely a week away when the two men first met. David Corn, Washington editor of the liberal news website Mother Jones, had agreed to meet with his contact, a former spy, under the condition that he would neither name him, reveal his identity or the spy service where he had worked for nearly two decades.

Russia sanctions may be scrapped

Trump told the Wall Street Journal he is prepared to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin some time after he is sworn in on January 20. Photo: Reuters President-elect Donald Trump has hinted that he may lift sanctions on Russia and won't stand by the "One China" policy unless Beijing improves its currency and trade practices. Trump told The Wall Street Journal in an interview published Friday that he would keep intact "at least for a period of time" sanctions President Barack Obama's administration imposed on Russia last month over Moscow's alleged cyberattacks to influence the US election.

Trump security adviser, Russian official already talking

In this Dec. 12, 2016 file photo, National Security Adviser-designate Michael T. Flynn waits for an elevator in the lobby at Trump Tower in New York. The Obama administration is aware of frequent contacts between President-elect Donald Trump's top national security adviser Michael Flynn and Russia's ambassador to the United States, including on the day President Barack Obama hit Moscow with sanctions in retaliation for election-related hacking, a senior U.S. official said Friday, Jan. 13, 2017.

Senate Intel Committee May Use Subpoenas in Russian Hacking Investigation

"As part of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence's oversight responsibilities we believe that it is critical to have a full understanding of the scope of Russian intelligence activities impacting the United States," the statement said. The U.S. intelligence community issued a report earlier this month saying that the Russian government and intelligence agencies, at the direction of the country's president, Vladimir Putin, waged a campaign in an attempt to influence the U.S. election.

Top Trump aide in frequent contact with Russia’s ambassador

President-elect Donald Trump's national security adviser and Russia's ambassador to the U.S. have been in frequent contact in recent weeks, including on the day the Obama administration hit Moscow with sanctions in retaliation for election-related hacking, a senior official said Friday. Trump spokesman Sean Spicer acknowledged contacts between Michael Flynn and Ambassador Sergey Kislyak, but said a phone conversation occurred on Dec. 28, one day before the sanctions were levied.

Ex-MI6 officer linked to Trump dossier ‘still working for British intelligence’

Russia has claimed the former MI6 officer reportedly responsible for an explosive dossier on Donald Trump may still be working for British intelligence. Christopher Steele has apparently gone into hiding after being identified as the author of the report claiming Moscow held incriminating material on the US president-elect which it could use to blackmail him.

CIA nominee talks tough against Russia

Donald Trump's pick to run the CIA took a tough stand against Russia on Thursday, distancing himself from the president-elect, who wants to warm relations with Moscow. Rep. Mike Pompeo, a four-term conservative Kansas Republican, spoke at his confirmation hearing before the Senate intelligence committee amid a testy standoff between Trump and the spy community over Russian activities during the president election.

Human rights groups slam Rex Tillerson, Trump’s pick for secretary of State

Donald Trump's pick for secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, fields human rights questions at his Senate confirmation hearing in Washington on Wednesday. Donald Trump's pick for secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, fields human rights questions at his Senate confirmation hearing in Washington on Wednesday.

Russia likely to be the elephant in the room during Pompeoa s CIA hearing

Kansas Rep. Mike Pompeo will have his turn in the confirmation spotlight on Thursday as the Senate Intelligence Committee takes up his nomination to be CIA director. The questions will almost certainly turn on what he thinks about Russia's hacking activities and how he'd lead an agency President-elect Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized.

‘These things happen’: Rex Tillerson refuses to blame…

Sen. Marco Rubio asked Rex Tillerson point-blank whether Vladimir Putin was a war criminal - and Donald Trump's pick for secretary of state blinked. "I would not use that term," said Tillerson, the longtime chief executive of Exxon Mobil who was awarded the Kremlin's Order of Friendship in 2013 .

America’s Russian Dybbuk

From ancient Hebrew folklore, the dybbuk is a demonic spirit that inhabits a person's body and soul in order to get what it wants. American foreign policy is endlessly driven to search and destroy imaginary demons: Noriega, Milosevic, Saddam, Ho, Tojo, Nasser, Gaddafi, Lumumba, Castro, Osama, Yanukovych, and a host of others in its hit parade.