On the recordJanuary 23, 2017
Mr. President, today I urge all Senators to confirm Mike Pompeo as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. Mike is a distinguished Congressman, a successful businessman, an Army veteran, and he is my friend. I served with Mike for 2 years in the House of Representatives. Over the last 2 years, we both served on our respective intelligence committees. I cannot count the hours we have spent together reviewing analytic products, assessing the needs of the intelligence community, conducting oversight of that community, and we have traveled the world together to do those things. From personal experience, I can tell you this is a man who understands exactly what it takes to keep America safe. He understands it because he has dedicated his life to it. When he was 19, Mike decided to join the Army, writing a blank check to his country for any amount, up to his life. He graduated first in his class at West Point and afterward joined the 1st Squadron, 2nd Cavalry, patrolling the Iron Curtain in Germany. For some people--including not a few in this Chamber--the Cold War is little more than ancient history and mostly the unfortunate result of American provocation and misunderstanding, but for Mike Pompeo, it was real life. He saw for himself the tank divisions, the gunships, and the eastern frontier of freedom. He knows, from personal experience, that conflict is rarely just a big misunderstanding, something you can clear up with reset buttons, open hands, and nice gestures.…





