Pompeo confirms that Mueller questioned him
Nominee promises to restore State Dept. morale
WASHINGTON – CIA Director Mike Pompeo vowed Thursday at his confirmation hearing for secretary of State to promote democracy and end the “demoralizing” vacancies at the State Department.
“If we do not lead the calls for democracy, prosperity and human rights around the world, who will?” Pompeo said during his testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “No other nation is equipped with the same blend of power and principle.”
Pompeo, a former Republican congressman from Kansas with a reputation for hawkish views on American security, has been a lightning rod for criticism from human rights advocates and some Democrats who worry he’ll lead the president into war.
Protesters interrupted the start of Pompeo’s hearing in the Senate, chanting, “No Pompeo” and “No more war.”
In addressing his reputation, Pompeo said, “War is the last resort … and I know I work for a president who feels the same.
“The U.S. needs a military balance of power, but the best outcomes are always won at the diplomatic table. ... Diplomacy gives us a chance to achieve what we want peacefully,” he said.
After months of disputes with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, President Trump removed the former Exxon executive in March and nominated Pompeo for the post.
Pompeo would become the nation’s top diplomat in a State Department that’s seen many of its most experienced personnel depart in the past year. Many ambassadorships are unfilled around the world.
Pompeo said he plans to help State employees feel relevant again and gain the resources they need.
New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez, ranking Democrat on the committee, asked about Pompeo’s interactions with special counsel Robert Mueller, who is investigating whether the Trump campaign colluded with Russians accused of trying to influence the 2016 presidential election.
Pompeo said for the first time publicly that he was questioned by Mueller. “He interviewed me,” he said. “I’ve cooperated with both investigations,” Mueller’s and the inquiry by Congress.
Pushed by Menendez to detail what he told Mueller and other investigators, Pompeo demurred. “As long as these investigations continue, I will not speak about the conversations I’ve had,” he said.
Pompeo harshly criticized Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Pompeo said he would take the Russian leader “at his word” that he thinks the greatest catastrophe of the 20th century was the dissolution of the Soviet Union, something Putin said in 2005.
“(Putin’s) goal is to regain and maintain his power ... to maintain not only his capability, his enormous nuclear arsenal, but also to maintain the perception that he has that,” Pompeo said. In addition, Putin wants to undermine the United States, he said.
“We need to push back in each place that we confront them,” Pompeo said, listing cyber, diplomatic and economic arenas. “We need to do our best to make sure (Putin) doesn’t succeed.”