President Donald Trump backed up his nominee to be the next director of the CIA after indications that Democratic lawmakers will make a stand against her for past participation in a controversial interrogation program for terrorists.
My highly respected nominee for CIA Director, Gina Haspel, has come under fire because she was too tough on Terrorists. Think of that, in these very dangerous times, we have the most qualified person, a woman, who Democrats want OUT because she is too tough on terror. Win Gina!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 7, 2018
CIA deputy director Gina Haspel is slated to testify before the Senate Intelligence Committee next week where she is likely to face increasing questions over her role in the CIA’s enhanced interrogation program in the mid-2000s. She joined the CIA in 1985 and has served in a variety of different postings across the globe.
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders joined Trump in pushing for Haspel’s nomination in a Saturday tweet.
There is no one more qualified to be the first woman to lead the CIA than 30+ year CIA veteran Gina Haspel. Any Democrat who claims to support women’s empowerment and our national security but opposes her nomination is a total hypocrite
— Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) May 5, 2018