The CIA Doesn't Care About the Shutdown, Will 'Crush' Enemies Anyway
The government shutdown that has brought Capitol Hill to a standstill will not affect the CIA and its operations, its chief Mike Pompeo said Monday.
The spy agency usually focuses on foreign intelligence operations to protect U.S. soil, but intelligence officials are having to deal with the closure of several federal agencies because of a failure to agree a bipartisan budget for the coming weeks that would have kept the government open.
They closed their doors on Saturday, but the intelligence services are expected to be relatively untouched because of their importance to national security.
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CIA director Pompeo said that the closure “won’t impact our operations here at the CIA” because its work countering the numerous threats facing the U.S. had to continue.
"We're gonna continue crushing our adversaries, whether the government's open or closed. We do hope it gets opened back up," Pompeo said.
"The American people are having complicated discussions about their priorities. I think that's entirely appropriate in a democracy," Pompeo said.
The former congressman is a close ally of President Donald Trump and said that he had not seen signs of any potential collusion between Trump and the Russian government, which is the focus of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s ongoing investigation.
"I haven't seen it…I can only say this: I've watched this administration deal with all of our adversaries in a way that has been robust,” Pompeo told CBS News. “And the CIA, as part of that, is doing our part."
The CIA is waging a battle to combat the extremist threat to the country, taking on operations that seek to counter the aims of the Islamic State militant group (ISIS), Al-Qaeda and even state actors opposed to the U.S., such as Iran.
Despite the shutdown, Pompeo said he is completely focused on delivering the best results for Trump. "I want the president to have the best intelligence in the world."
"Look, I served in Congress, so I've seen this from another role," he told Norah O’Donnell. "I'm not sure I agree that it signals dysfunction. The American people are having complicated discussions about their priorities. I think that's entirely appropriate in a democracy."