The folks at the CIA are not happy about the DNI. Not happy at all.
I thought we had posted this but no. Better late than never.
From Politico, March 23:
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard is finalizing a plan to assume responsibility for the CIA-backed venture capital firm In-Q-Tel
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence is finalizing a plan to become the primary federal steward of a CIA-backed venture capital firm that funds high-tech gadgets and software for U.S. spies, according to six people with knowledge of the effort.
If approved, the move would shift intelligence community oversight of the firm, In-Q-Tel, away from the CIA, which chartered the tech innovation fund more than 25 years ago, and nest it under Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, whose office oversees the U.S. spy community.
But there are those in the intel community and Congress who oppose the idea, setting up a bureaucratic tussle that would test Gabbard’s standing inside the Trump administration and with Congress.
Supporters of the change argue that In-Q-Tel caters too much to the tech needs of the CIA over other defense and intelligence agencies, such as the National Reconnaissance Office and the FBI.
Congress funds In-Q-Tel through the CIA, which also hosts a liaison office that helps set In-Q-Tel’s investment priorities. ODNI — which was founded to improve coordination across the expansive network of federal spy agencies after 9/11 — did not exist at the time of In-Q-Tel’s founding in 1999.
The CIA and some key Democratic lawmakers oppose the idea, according to four of the six people. Republicans, for their part, appear uncommitted thus far on the plan.
“Taking something that works and giving it to Tulsi is not a recipe for success,” said one Congressional aide. The person, like others in this report, was granted anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the discussions.
The CIA declined to comment. A spokesperson for In-Q-Tel, a not-for-profit that is legally independent of the government, declined to comment.
After publication, Gabbard spokesperson Olivia Coleman refuted some of POLITICO’s reporting in a post on X. “This is a good news story about the Intelligence Community working together to rapidly bring innovative tech to our national security professionals.”
She added: “For nearly a year, ODNI has worked in close partnership with the CIA to ensure that cutting-edge technology is easily and rapidly accessible to the entire Intelligence Community, including through long-time partner In-Q-Tel and other channels. These conversations are ongoing and have been positive, collaborative, and focused on implementing a structure that best fulfills our mission of keeping the American people safe and secure.”....
....MUCH MORE
And this at the New York Post, May 11:
DNI Tulsi Gabbard probes US funding to more than 120 biolabs abroad
And this yesterday:
CIA Response To Whistleblower Claim Of Covid Origin Coverup
And more to come, I'm sure.