Douglas Valentine is the Author of ”The Phoenix Program” and a government intelligence investigator.
1) When we think of the Intelligence Community, the common view is that they’re exclusively serving the nations interests and infrastructure. But are they protecting their own interests or the nation’s?
I wrote an article in 2003 for Penthouse titled Homeland Security for Whom? In it I explained that all these security programs are get-rich schemes for the powerful. They manufacture threats, then get rich selling protection. Like the Mafia.
2) Does the CIA act independently from the NSA, or DIA? And does the Government have the same grip on the Intelligence Community it had a few decades ago?
These are all massive bureaucracies. One can’t possibly know all that the others are doing. Very generally: the CIA is political warfare; the NSA is electronic surveillance; the DIA oversees all the military branches’ intelligence services. High level intelligence from NSA and DIA is sent to the CIA for political evaluation.
3) Why is the Phoenix program important to understand?
The war on terror is based on the Phoenix program. By war on terror, I mean the efforts of the US to influence political events around the world through guerrilla warfare – psychological warfare – and political warfare. As the world’s only military superpower, this is how the US polices its empire. If you understand Phoenix, you understand how that’s done.
4) Is the CIA launching more operations than ever before. If so, for what purpose?
See above.
5) Should the average American trust the Intelligence Community and assume its mission is to safeguard the Nation from outside threats?
There is no difference anymore between foreign and domestic intelligence operations. Homeland Security is the flipside of the war on terror. The world is divided into an small 1% that controls the wealth, politics, and security services. The CIA serves this 1% in America – as do all the other bureaucracies and the media. Their single purpose is to keep power and wealth away from the 99%.
6) Obama doesn’t speak much about the IC, but it has become very large this past decade. Were Romney and Obama hiding the IC’c expansion to the public?
No. The public can easily inform itself if it wishes.
7) What is your biggest fear from the IC?
That it exists.
