Ray McGovern

Ray McGovern works with Tell the Word, the publishing arm of the ecumenical Church of the Saviour in inner-city Washington. In the Sixties he served as an infantry/intelligence officer and then became a CIA analyst for the next 27 years. He is on the Steering Group of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS).

Barr Kicks Durham Can Down the Street

Attorney General William Barr has abandoned the Trump ship, after drilling two huge holes in its hull. On Tuesday Barr poured cold water on President Donald Trump’s allegations of voter fraud, announcing that the Justice Department had found no fraud "on a scale that could have effected a different outcome in the election"). Of no … Continue reading “Barr Kicks Durham Can Down the Street”

What Is John Brennan So Worried About?

Former CIA Director John Brennan is apparently so worried that Donald Trump might release certain classified intelligence that he suggested this week that Vice President Mike Pence and the cabinet remove Trump via the 25th amendment. Brennan appeared this week on both CNN and MSNBC to spread alarm about what Trump might do as he … Continue reading “What Is John Brennan So Worried About?”

Trump Orders Russiagate Documents Declassified – So What!

Home alone yesterday evening, and apparently emboldened by the steroids he is now taking, President Donald Trump sent out a storm of Tweets that included a unprecedentedly bold challenge to the FBI and CIA to stop their foot dragging and declassify documents related to Russiagate and Hillary Clinton. It was probably his plummeting poll numbers … Continue reading “Trump Orders Russiagate Documents Declassified – So What!”

Comey’s Amnesia Makes Senate Session Unforgettable

Former FBI Director James Comey testified to Congress last Wednesday that he did not remember much about what was going on when the FBI deceived the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) Court into approving four warrants for surveillance of Trump campaign aide Carter Page. Few outsiders are aware that those warrants covered not only Page … Continue reading “Comey’s Amnesia Makes Senate Session Unforgettable”

Catapulting Russian-Meddling Propaganda

The fresh orgy of anti-Russian invective in the lickspittle media (LSM) has the feel of fin de siècle. The last four reality-impaired years do seem as though they add up to a century. And no definitive fin is in sight, as long as most people don’t know what’s going on. The LSM should be confronted: … Continue reading “Catapulting Russian-Meddling Propaganda”

What Scowcroft Failed To Do

Some of the praise being accorded the late Brent Scowcroft is deserved. As national security adviser to President George H. W. Bush, the unassuming Scowcroft was a voice for relative reason and moderation (compared to the neoconservatives who would follow him), as the USSR imploded and U.S. forces chased Saddam Hussein out of Kuwait. But … Continue reading “What Scowcroft Failed To Do”

Presumptuous Pompeo Pushes Preposterous ‘Peking’ Policy

Quick. Somebody tell Mike Pompeo. The secretary of state is not supposed to play the role of court jester – the laughing stock to the world. There was no sign that any of those listening to his “major China policy statement” last Thursday at the Nixon Library turned to their neighbor and said, “He’s kidding, … Continue reading “Presumptuous Pompeo Pushes Preposterous ‘Peking’ Policy”

Powell and Iraq: The Uses and Abuses of National Intelligence Estimates

The New York Times Magazine on Friday posted “Colin Powell Still Wants Answers,” a long article by Robert Draper to appear in Sunday’s edition. The article is based on Draper’s upcoming book, To Start a War: How the Bush Administration Took America Into Iraq. Google Books calls it “the definitive, revelatory reckoning with arguably the … Continue reading “Powell and Iraq: The Uses and Abuses of National Intelligence Estimates”

New York Times Deploys Heavy Gun to Back ‘Intel’ on Russian Bounties

The New York Times is pulling out all the stops in promoting its dubious story on Russia offering bounty for dead U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan. Wednesday’s installment, a “news analysis” by Times veteran writers David E. Sanger and Eric Schmitt, treats the allegations that Russia paid Taliban or Taliban-related terrorists to kill US troops as … Continue reading “New York Times Deploys Heavy Gun to Back ‘Intel’ on Russian Bounties”

How an Internet ‘Persona’ Helped Birth Russiagate

Four years ago today, on June 15, 2016, a shadowy Internet persona calling itself “Guccifer 2.0” appeared out of nowhere to claim credit for hacking emails from the Democratic National Committee on behalf of WikiLeaks and implicate Russia by dropping “telltale” but synthetically produced Russian “breadcrumbs” in his metadata. Thanks largely to the corporate media, … Continue reading “How an Internet ‘Persona’ Helped Birth Russiagate”