Trump taps Truth Social CEO Nunes for intelligence role – DW – 12/15/2024

Donald Trump on Saturday nominated former Republican Congressman Devin Nunes to chair the Presidential Intelligence Advisory Council.

Nunes would maintain his current role as CEO of his company Truth Social if he accepted the position, Trump said in a message on the same platform.

Trump is in the process of nominating several officials for his second term, which begins in January, following his election victory in November.

Who is Devin Nunes?

Nunes, 51, served as a Republican congressman from California from 2003 until late 2021.

He chaired the House Intelligence Committee from 2015 to 2019.

During this period, coinciding with approximately the halfway point of Trump’s first term, Nunes issued a controversial memo alleging that the FBI had conspired against Trump during its investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, when Trump defeated Hillary Clinton.

“Devin will draw on his experience as former chairman of the House Intelligence Committee and his key role in exposing the Russia, Russia, Russia hoax, to provide me with independent assessments of the effectiveness and appropriateness of the activities of the American intelligence community,” Trump said. wrote.

Trump awarded Nunes the Presidential Medal of Freedom shortly before leaving office in January 2021.

What is the Presidential Intelligence Advisory Board?

The Presidential Intelligence Advisory Board, or PIAB, was established in the mid-20th century.

It is meant to provide an independent source of advice on the effectiveness of the U.S. intelligence community and its data.

Trump said Saturday that the board was made up of “prominent citizens from outside the federal government.”

Other appointments, ABC settles defamation lawsuit

Trump also announced Saturday that he was choosing Richard Grenell, his former intelligence chief, as presidential envoy for special missions.

Grenell, who also served as U.S. ambassador to Germany during part of Trump’s first term, “is reportedly working in some of the hottest places on earth, including Venezuela and North Korea,” Trump wrote in an article on Truth Social.

The president-elect also named Troy Edgar, an IBM executive and former U.S. Department of Homeland Security official, as deputy secretary of the department.

He said New York businessman Bill White, a donor to the 2024 campaign and a past supporter of Democrats Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, would become the next US ambassador to Belgium.

Also on Saturday, US television network ABC settled a defamation lawsuit with Trump out of court, according to court documents.

ABC would make a “charitable donation” of $15 million (around €14.3 million) to a fund dedicated to a future Trump presidential museum, as well as around $1 million in attorney’s fees.

The case revolved around an ABC anchor falsely claiming, in a March interview with U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace, that Trump had been found civilly liable for rape in New York, when it was a civil sexual abuse case, which Trump plans to appeal.

msh/sri (AP, Reuters)