Mark Kirk (Republican, 10th District – Illinois) admitted on the floor of Congress that he has been working for the Central Intelligence Agency at the same time he is serving in Congress. Lee Goodman, Kirk's Democratic opponent, called for Kirk's resignation from Congress. "The conflict of interest is blatant and appalling," said Goodman. "Congress has been struggling to investigate intelligence failures by the CIA and now it turns out Kirk is working for the CIA. No wonder Kirk voted not to investigate these failures after 9/11. He is working for the people who didn't want to be investigated. Any high-schooler who has studied the separation of powers in U.S. history class would recognize the problem."
Goodman pointed out that until this revelation, Kirk had concealed his CIA connection. "Up until now, all he said was that he was a Navy reservist who was spending some weekends at the Pentagon. Now it turns out he is working with the people who conduct covert operations.
Is there any way an agent of the CIA can be expected to function as a legitimate representative of the people in his district? The CIA is an organization that depends on secrecy. Congress is supposed to operate under public scrutiny. The two just aren't compatible."
Lee For Me article
Goodman pointed out that until this revelation, Kirk had concealed his CIA connection. "Up until now, all he said was that he was a Navy reservist who was spending some weekends at the Pentagon. Now it turns out he is working with the people who conduct covert operations.
Is there any way an agent of the CIA can be expected to function as a legitimate representative of the people in his district? The CIA is an organization that depends on secrecy. Congress is supposed to operate under public scrutiny. The two just aren't compatible."
Get over yourself. It's riddled with illegitimacy.
I wonder how many others there are.
Mr. SIMMONS: Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to my friend and distinguished colleague, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kirk), who is also a naval intelligence officer.
Mr. KIRK: Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the Simmons amendment. Unlike some other amendments in this bill that are offered for partisan advantage, this amendment is offered by a former CIA officer with detailed knowledge of how the U.S. intelligence community works. To my knowledge, there are only three current Members of Congress who work with the CIA: our chairman, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Goss), the author of this amendment; the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Simmons); and me, who is detailed to the CIA from navy intelligence.
...Denying the accuracy of the Congressional Record, Mark Kirk (Republican, 10th District, Illinois) said he is not working for the Central Intelligence Agency. The Congressional Record, the official verbatim transcript of everything said on the floor of the House of Representatives, shows that on June 23, 2004, Kirk said he "is" working for the Central Intelligence Agency. Kirk's Democratic opponent, Lee Goodman, pointed out that Kirk's employment by the C.I.A. while serving in Congress would be unethical and illegal. When questioned about the matter by a reporter for the Waukegan News Sun newspaper, Kirk said the Congressional Record was wrong.
Infoshop article
Mr. KIRK: Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the Simmons amendment. Unlike some other amendments in this bill that are offered for partisan advantage, this amendment is offered by a former CIA officer with detailed knowledge of how the U.S. intelligence community works. To my knowledge, there are only three current Members of Congress who work with the CIA: our chairman, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Goss), the author of this amendment; the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Simmons); and me, who is detailed to the CIA from navy intelligence.
...Denying the accuracy of the Congressional Record, Mark Kirk (Republican, 10th District, Illinois) said he is not working for the Central Intelligence Agency. The Congressional Record, the official verbatim transcript of everything said on the floor of the House of Representatives, shows that on June 23, 2004, Kirk said he "is" working for the Central Intelligence Agency. Kirk's Democratic opponent, Lee Goodman, pointed out that Kirk's employment by the C.I.A. while serving in Congress would be unethical and illegal. When questioned about the matter by a reporter for the Waukegan News Sun newspaper, Kirk said the Congressional Record was wrong.
What can I say?
No comments:
Post a Comment
Comments are moderated. There may be some delay before your comment is published. It all depends on how much time M has in the day. But please comment!