August 14, 2017

The director of the CIA, Mike Pompeo, told Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace that the chance of a nuclear war with North Korea is not imminent today, "But make no mistake about it - the increased chance that there will be a nuclear missile in Denver is a very serious threat and the administration is going to treat as such."

Chris Wallace replied, "homina homina!"

After last week, Americans are nervous because of Trump's ramped up rhetoric against North Korea coupled with leaked and questionably sourced reports saying Kim Jong-un is farther along on the ICBM front than we thought. Host Chris Wallace tried to get reassurances from Pompeo on Sunday that we are not on the brink of a nuclear war, despite Trump's bluster.

Wallace said, "I think it's fair to say the whole world is kind of worried, is concerned. I talked to regular folks about, are we headed for nuclear confrontation?"

He continued, "As the head of the CIA, your best intelligence -- because a lot of this depends. The president has set a number of redlines, how confident can you be as to whether he's going to step back from those red lines or step over them?"

Pompeo said he couldn't tell us what's happening behind the scenes but bizarrely replied that Trump "made our policy very clear. We've engaged the world to support that policy."

Huh? By telling North Korea we'll destroy you if you talk like jerks? Know anyone else that fits the bill?

This started a "Who's On First" dynamic with the CIA director.

Wallace: "But I'm asking you about the reaction in Pyongyang."

Pompeo: "So, the reaction in North Korea that we are intending to get is an understanding that America is no longer going to have the strategic patience that attached, that has permitted him to continue to develop his weapons program. It's that straightforward."

Wallace: "But can you be confident that he's going to play your game?"

Pompeo: "It's a very difficult situation in North Korea."

Wallace: "So, how worried should people be?"

Pompeo: "Nothing imminent. We've seen what the Defense Department has said on our side. You've seen the reporting about what the North Koreans are doing and not doing. There's nothing imminent today. But make no mistake about it, the continuation, the increased chance that there will be a nuclear missile in Denver is a very serious threat and the administration is going to treat as such."

WTF?

Nothing today, but tomorrow Denver might be lit up with radiation like a Christmas tree? I mean, no worries, right?

Wallace: "You say that there's nothing imminent, but you can only talk from the U.S. side. Can you be sure there's nothing imminent from the North Korean side?"

Pompeo: "We have a pretty good idea."

Wallace: "And what's your idea?

Pompeo, "I can't -- can't share with you about the information we have about what's going on in North Korea. But make no mistake, the intelligence community does excellent work on understanding what's going on on the North Korean side."

After more back and forth nonsense, Wallace pressed, "But when you say that there's nothing imminent..."

Pompeo replied, "What I'm talking about is I've heard folks talking about that we being on the cusp of a nuclear war, I've seen no intelligence that would indicate that we're in that place today."

Today, that is.

Denver, did you get the message?

Discussion

We welcome relevant, respectful comments. Any comments that are sexist or in any other way deemed hateful by our staff will be deleted and constitute grounds for a ban from posting on the site. Please refer to our Terms of Service for information on our posting policy.
Mastodon