2016 ELECTION/FOREIGN POLICY/INTELLIGENCE/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump lit into the U.S. intelligence community on Wednesday [1-30-19], telling his intel chiefs to ‘go back to school’ just one day after they publicly contradicted him on several of his foreign policy priorities…Trump’s tweets were a direct rebuttal of the public testimony his top intelligence chiefs gave Tuesday [1-29-19] morning while discussing the gravest threats to the U.S. worldwide. The attack also marked the latest example of Trump’s public feud with the intelligence community. The president has often cast doubt on the official assessment that Russia interfered in the 2016 election to aid his candidacy, and even publicly sided with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the matter. Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats and CIA Director Gina Haspel both indicated on Tuesday that there is significant daylight between the president and the intelligence community on major issues. They testified that the Islamic State remains a forceful presence in Iraq and Syria, that North Korea is not likely to give up its nuclear weapons, and that Iran is not yet seeking a nuclear weapon.”
–Caitlin Oprysko, “Trump tells intel chiefs to ‘go back to school’ after they break with him,” Politico, January 30, 2019 12:23 pm