Michael Richard "Mike" Pompeo (born December 30, 1963) is an
American politician who has been the U.S. Representative for Kansas's 4th
congressional districtsince 2011. He is a member of the Tea Party movement within
the Republican Party.[3][4] He was a Kansas representative on the Republican National
Committee. On November 18, 2016 he was selected by President-elect Donald Trump to
be Trump's nominee for Director of the
Central Intelligence Agency.[5]
Education, and early career
Pompeo was born in Orange, California, the son of Dorothy (née
Mercer) and Wayne Pompeo.[6][7] He
attended the U.S. Military Academy where he
majored in Mechanical Engineering, graduating first in his
class in 1986 and subsequently serving in the Regular Army as an Armor Branch cavalry officer from 1986 to
1991.[8] He
received his J.D. from Harvard Law School, where he was an editor of
the Harvard Law Review. He then worked as a lawyer
for Williams & Connolly.[9]
Business career
Pompeo founded Thayer Aerospace.[10] In
2006 he sold his interest in Thayer (which was renamed Nex-Tech Aerospace). He
became the President of Sentry International, an oilfield equipment company.[11]
Jefferson
Beauregard "Jeff" Sessions III (born December 24, 1946) is the junior United States Senator from Alabama.
First elected in 1996, Sessions is a member of the Republican Party.
From
1981 to 1993 he served as U.S. Attorney
for the Southern District of Alabama. Sessions was elected Attorney General of Alabama in 1994, and to the U.S. Senate in
1996, being re-elected in 2002, 2008, and 2014. Sessions was ranked by National Journal in 2007 as the fifth-most conservative U.S. Senator, siding strongly with the
Republican Party on political issues. He supported the major legislative
efforts of the George W. Bush administration, including the 2001 and 2003 tax cut
packages, the Iraq War,
and a proposed national amendment to ban same-sex marriage.
He was one of 25 senators to oppose the establishment of the Troubled Asset
Relief Program. He has opposed the Democratic leadership since 2007 on most major
legislation, including the stimulus bill, the Patient Protection and Affordable
Care Act, and the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act. As the ranking Republican on
the Senate Judiciary Committee,
he opposed all three of President Barack Obama's nominees for the Supreme Court.
On
November 18, 2016, the transition team announced
via press release that President-elect Trump had picked Sessions as his nominee for Attorney General.
U.S. Attorney
Sessions was an Assistant United States Attorney in the Office of the
United States Attorney for the Southern District of Alabamabeginning
in 1975. In 1981, President Reagan nominated Sessions to be the U.S. Attorney
for the Southern District of Alabama. The Senate confirmed him and he held that position
for 12 years.[8]
Alabama Attorney General and U.S.
Senate
Sessions was elected Attorney General of Alabama in
November 1994, unseating incumbent Democrat Jimmy Evans with 57% of the vote.
In 1996, Sessions won the Republican primary for U.S. Senate,
after a runoff, and then defeated Democrat Roger Bedford 53%–46%
in the November general election.[6] He
succeeded Howell Heflin, who had retired after 18 years
in the Senate. In 2002, Sessions won reelection by defeating Democratic State
Auditor Susan Parker. In 2008, Sessions defeated
Democratic State Senator Vivian Davis Figures (sister-in-law of
Thomas Figures, the Assistant U.S. Attorney who testified at Sessions' judicial
confirmation hearing) to win a third term.
Sessions received 63 percent of the vote to Figures' 37 percent. Sessions
successfully sought a fourth term in 2014[33] and
was uncontested in both the Republican primary and the general election.[34][35]
Sessions was only the second freshman Republican senator from
Alabama since Reconstruction and
gave Alabama two Republican senators, a first since Reconstruction. He was
easily reelected in 2002, becoming the first Republican
reelected to the Senate from Alabama since Reconstruction (given that his
colleague Richard Shelby, who won reelection as a Republican in 1998, had
previously run as a Democrat, switching parties in 1994).[34]
Michael Thomas "Mike" Flynn (born
December 1958) is a retired United States Army lieutenant
general who last served as the 18th Director
of the Defense Intelligence Agency, from July 22, 2012 to August 7,
2014.[1]
Flynn's military career was primarily operational, with
numerous combat arms,
conventional and special operations senior
intelligence assignments. He co-authored a report in January 2010 through
the Center
for a New American Security entitled Fixing Intel: A
Blueprint for Making Intelligence Relevant in Afghanistan,[2]
His service also included being the commander of the Joint Functional Component Command for Intelligence,
Surveillance and Reconnaissance, chair of the Military
Intelligence Board, Assistant Director
of National Intelligence,[3][4] and the senior intelligence
officer for the Joint
Special Operations Command. He retired with 33 years service in the
Army.
Flynn is a published author, with articles appearing in Small Wars Journal, Military Review, Joint Forces
Quarterly and other military and intelligence publications.
In May 2016, he emerged as one of several leading possibilities
to be the vice
presidential running mate for Republican nominee
Donald Trump,[5][6][7][8] but instead, Trump
selected Indiana Governor Mike Pence.[9] At the 2016
Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio, Flynn delivered what
the Los Angeles Timescalled a "fiery speech".[10] On November 18, 2016, Trump's
transition team announced via press release that President-elect Donald Trump had named General Flynn
his National
Security Advisor.[11]
Flynn is a registered Democrat,
having grown up in a "very strong Democratic family".[60] However, he was a keynote
speaker during the first night of the 2016
Republican National Convention,[10] and he is a surrogate and top
national security adviser for president-elect Donald Trump.
Education
Flynn was born in Middletown, Rhode
Island in December 1958,[4] Michael Flynn graduated from
the University of
Rhode Island with a Bachelor of Science degree
in management science in
1981 and was a Distinguished Military Graduate of the Reserve
Officers' Training Corps. He also earned a Master of
Business Administration in Telecommunications from Golden Gate
University, a Master of Military Art and Science from the United States Army Command and General Staff College,
and a Master of Arts in
National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College.[1]
Flynn is a graduate of the Military Intelligence Officer Basic
Course, Military Intelligence Officer Advanced Course, Army Command and General Staff College,
the School
of Advanced Military Studies, and Naval War College.[1]
U.S. Military career
Flynn was commissioned in the U.S. Army as a second lieutenant
in military intelligence, in 1981.[1] His military assignments
included multiple tours at Fort Bragg,
North Carolina with the 82nd Airborne
Division, XVIII Airborne Corps,
and Joint Special Operations Command, where he deployed for Invasion of Grenada in Grenada and Operation Uphold
Democracy in Haiti.[20] He also served with the 25th
Infantry Division at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, and at the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, Louisiana, and the Army
Intelligence Center at Fort Huachuca, Arizona.[1]
Flynn served as the assistant chief of staff, G2, XVIII
Airborne Corps at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, from June 2001 and the director
of intelligence, Joint Task
Force 180 in Afghanistan until July 2002. He commanded
the 111th Military Intelligence Brigade from
June 2002 to June 2004.[1] He was the director of
intelligence for Joint
Special Operations Command from July 2004 to June 2007, with
service in Afghanistan (Operation
Enduring Freedom) and Iraq (Operation Iraqi Freedom). He served
as the director of intelligence, United States
Central Command from June 2007 to July 2008, as the director of
intelligence, Joint Staff from July 2008 to June 2009, then the director of
intelligence, International
Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan from June 2009 to
October 2010.[1][21]
Defense Intelligence Agency, Director
In September 2011, Flynn was promoted to Lieutenant General and
assigned to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. On April
17, 2012, President Barack Obama nominated
Flynn to be the 18th director
of the Defense Intelligence Agency.[22][23] Flynn took command of the DIA
in July 2012.[24] In October 2012, Flynn
announced plans to release his paper "VISION2020: Accelerating Change
Through Integration", a broad look at how the Defense Intelligence Agency
must transform to meet the national security challenges for the 21st Century.[25] It was meant to emphasize
“integration, interagency teamwork and innovation of the whole workforce, not
just the technology but the people.” [26]
Retirement
On April 30, 2014, Flynn announced his retirement effective
later in 2014, about a year earlier than he had been scheduled to leave his
position. Flynn retired with 33 years of service on August 7, 2014.[35]
Consulting firm
Main article: Flynn Intel Group
Flynn, along with son Michael G. Flynn, runs Flynn Intel Group
which provides intelligence services for business and governments.[36]
Having already been consulted regarding national security by candidates Carly Fiorina, Scott Walker, Ben Carson, Ted Cruz, and Donald Trump,[47] Flynn was asked in February
2016 to serve as an adviser to the Trump
campaign.[48] As one of the keynote
speakers during the first night of the 2016
Republican National Convention Flynn gave what the Los Angeles Times described as a
"fiery" speech, in which he stated: "We are tired of Obama's
empty speeches and his misguided rhetoric. This, this has caused the world to
have no respect for America's word, nor does it fear our might";[10] On November 18, 2016, Flynn
accepted president-elect Donald Trump's offer of the position of National
Security Advisor.[59]
Political
Having already been consulted regarding national security by candidates Carly Fiorina, Scott Walker, Ben Carson, Ted Cruz, and Donald Trump,[47] Flynn was asked in February
2016 to serve as an adviser to the Trump
campaign.[48] As one of the keynote
speakers during the first night of the 2016
Republican National Convention Flynn gave what the Los Angeles Times described as a
"fiery" speech, in which he stated: "We are tired of Obama's
empty speeches and his misguided rhetoric. This, this has caused the world to
have no respect for America's word, nor does it fear our might";[10] On November 18, 2016, Flynn
accepted president-elect Donald Trump's offer of the position of National
Security Advisor.[59]
Flynn has been a board member of ACT! for America[59] and sees the Muslim faith as
one of the root causes of Islamist terrorism.[63]He has described Islam as a political ideology and
a cancer,[63][64] and stated on Twitter that the "fear of Muslims is
RATIONAL."[59]Initially supportive of Trump's
proposal to ban Muslims from entering the US, Flynn later told Al Jazeera that
a blanket ban was unworkable and has called instead for "vetting" of
entrants from countries like Syria.[59] Flynn has stated the U.S.
"should extradite Fethullah Gülen"
to Turkey and "work constructively with
Russia" in Syria.[33][65]
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