Sen.-elect Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., expressed concern Sunday that some of President-elect Donald Trump’s selections of national security Cabinet positions will be beholden to his political preferences rather than an objective interpreting of intelligence.
Slotkin, a former CIA officer and Pentagon official, told “This Week” co-anchor Martha Raddatz that selections like Fox News host Pete Hegseth for Defense secretary and former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard to head national intelligence should tell Trump precisely what they’re seeing in the world rather than catering to his foreign policy stances, which have included things like reduced aid to Ukraine and a more aggressive stance against China.
“I just need to know that the people who are in these jobs are not going to be guided by politics and what someone tells them they think they should be seeing in the intelligence or in the defense picture, but what is actually the truth on the ground,” Slotkin said.
Democratic Sen.-elect Elissa Slotkin of Michigan addresses the media, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024, in Detroit.
Carlos Osorio/AP
“Speaking truth to power is one of the most important things the intelligence community does, and if you have someone in there who feels more beholden to telling the president what he wants to hear, I got a real problem with that.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
