Here\u2019s an update concerning that Congressional testimony about North Korean missiles and nuclear warheads.<\/p>\n
Jonn\u2019s article Friday<\/a> indicated that GEN Martin Dempsey, CJCS, was \u201ctaken by surprise\u201d by the revelation by Congressman Doug Lamborn that North Korea may possess low-reliability nuclear warheads for long-range missiles.\u00a0 That revelation was apparently the unclassified conclusion of a DIA assessment report.<\/p>\n Congressional staffers had confirmed via classified e-mail exchange with DIA personnel that the statement was indeed unclassified.\u00a0 Pentagon sources later claimed the line had been \u201cmistakenly declassified\u201d.<\/p>\n Well, that may or may not be true.\u00a0 But it turns out that classification questions might not have been the only<\/em> reason that GEN Dempsey was shocked to hear it made in a public forum.\u00a0 According to the Army Times<\/em>,<\/a><\/p>\n In a new twist, a House source tells [Military Times sister publication] Defense News that a DIA congressional liaison told a senior House Armed Services Committee aide that while the finding was unclassified, the Obama administration wanted to keep it under wraps<\/em>. (emphasis added)<\/p>\n . . .<\/p>\n During the email exchange with the senior House Armed Services subcommittee professional staffer, the DIA legislative liaison told him, in the House aide\u2019s words: \u201cThe administration didn\u2019t want this getting out.\u201d <\/em>(emphasis added)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n The Administration has, quite predictably, backed away from the DIA assessment of North Korean nuclear capabilities.\u00a0 The DNI has stated that \u201cthe DIA finding is not shared by the other U.S. intelligence agencies\u201d, while a Pentagon spokesman has said that it would be \u201cinaccurate to suggest that the North Korean regime has fully tested, developed, or demonstrated the kinds of nuclear capabilities referenced in the passage.\u201d<\/p>\n That may be true.\u00a0 But about the latter, I\u2019ll observe the following:\u00a0 neither had the US prior to Hiroshima and Nagasaki<\/i>.\u00a0 Trinity was a ground-based test of a non-weaponized<\/span> nuclear device – not an operational test of a deliverable bomb.<\/p>\n Stay tuned.\u00a0 This one could get quite interesting.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"