Dan Coats: “I'd urge you to do so. I think there's bipartisan interest in trying to adjust that, but we don't always succeed in…”

Electoral legitimacy is the essential linchpin of our entire political culture.

This is not just one more technology.

One of the first things you can do--at this hearing, even--is to make a strong statement of support for professionalism in the IC and pledge that you will not tolerate politics influencing the analytical process.

You will need to inspire a workforce that has unfortunately been hollowed out by years of firings, and remind them that their mission is critical--and still noble.