Cancer Within 09.09.159:00 PM ET
"Exclusive: 50 Spies Say ISIS Intelligence Was Cooked
It's being called a 'revolt' by intelligence pros who are paid to give their honest assessment of the ISIS war, but are instead seeing their reports turned into happy talk.

More than 50 intelligence analysts working out of the U.S. military's Central Command have formally complained that their reports on ISIS and al Qaeda's branch in Syria were being inappropriately altered by senior officials, The Daily Beast has learned.

The complaints spurred the Pentagon's inspector general to open an investigation into the alleged manipulation of intelligence. The fact that so many people complained suggests there are deep-rooted, systemic problems in how the U.S. military command charged with the war against the self-proclaimed Islamic State assesses intelligence.

'The cancer was within the senior level of the intelligence command,' one defense official said.

Two senior analysts at CENTCOM signed a written complaint sent to the Defense Department inspector general in July alleging that the reports, some of which were briefed to President Obama, portrayed the terror groups as weaker than the analysts believe they are. The reports were changed by CENTCOM higher-ups to adhere to the administration's public line that the U.S. is winning the battle against ISIS and al Nusra, al Qaeda's branch in Syria, the analysts claim.

That complaint was supported by 50 other analysts, some of whom have complained about politicizing of intelligence reports for months. That's according to 11 individuals who are knowledgeable about the details of the report and who spoke to The Daily Beast on condition of anonymity.

The accusations suggest that a large number of people tracking the inner workings of the terror groups think that their reports are being manipulated to fit a public narrative. The allegations echoed charges that political appointees and senior officials cherry-picked intelligence about Iraq's supposed weapons program in 2002 and 2003.

The two signatories to the complaint were described as the ones formally lodging it, and the additional analysts are willing and able to back up the substance of the allegations with concrete examples.

One person who knows the contents of the complaint said it used the word 'Stalinist' to describe the tone set by officials overseeing the military's analysis.

Some of those CENTCOM analysts described the sizeable cadre of protesting analysts as a 'revolt' by intelligence professionals who are paid to give their honest assessment, based on facts, and not to be influenced by national-level policy. The analysts have accused senior-level leaders, including the director of intelligence and his deputy in CENTCOM, of changing their analyses to be more in line with the Obama administration's public contention that the fight against ISIS and al Qaeda is making progress. The analysts take a more pessimistic view about how military efforts to destroy the groups are going.

The large number of analysts who complained to the Pentagon inspector general hasn't been previously reported. Some of them are assigned to work at CENTCOM, the U.S. military's command for the Middle East and Central Asia, but are officially employed by the Defense Intelligence Agency.

The complaints allege that in some cases key elements of intelligence reports were removed, resulting in a document that didn't accurately capture the analysts' conclusions, sources familiar with the protest said. But the complaint also goes beyond alleged altering of reports and accuses some senior leaders at CENTCOM of creating an unprofessional work environment. One person who knows the contents of the written complaint sent to the inspector general said it used the word 'Stalinist' to describe the tone set by officials overseeing CENTCOM's analysis.

Many described a climate in which analysts felt they could not give a candid assessment of the situation in Iraq and Syria. Some felt it was a product of commanders protecting their career advancement by putting the best spin on the war.

Some reports crafted by the analysts that were too negative in their assessment of the war were sent back down the chain of the command or not shared up the chain, several analysts said. Still others, feeling the climate around them, self-censored so their reports affirmed already-held beliefs.

'While we cannot comment on the specific investigation cited in the article, we can speak to the process. The Intelligence Community routinely provides a wide range of subjective assessments related to the current security environment. These products and the analysis that they present are absolutely vital to our efforts, particularly given the incredibly complex nature of the multi-front fights that are ongoing now in Iraq and Syria,' said Air Force Col. Patrick Ryder, U.S. CENTCOM spokesman. 'Senior civilian and military leadership consider these assessments during planning and decision-making, along with information gained from various other sources, to include the insights provided by commanders on the ground and other key advisors, intelligence collection assets, and previous experience.'

Two of the officials who spoke to The Daily Beast said that analysts began airing their complaints in October in an effort to address the issue internally and only went to the inspector general when that effort failed. Some of those who complained were urged to retire, one official familiar with the report told The Daily Beast. Some agreed to leave."

The Obama Administration - The most transparent presidency ever!

yep,as transparent as Sewage!

The worst part about it is that he'll look anyone in the face and say he's transparent...with a smirk on his face...all the while knowing he's lying. Zero shame.

Isis is cooked hamas is cooked Afghanistan is cooked I love Putin leadership wished we had a spring leader

Maybe apply for Russian Citizenship?

I'll mine my business u mine yours. state ur case

ISIS is the JV team... haha

This whole Russian dynamic is going to make this even more interesting.

Putin has been 10 steps ahead of Obama in every situation obamba sent 5 battleships to Syria to do pin point strikes they get there and meet the Russian navy. they called Obama asked him OK now what.

Are you saying the Russian Navy faced down the US Navy?

seems we have ourselves a Putin-Fan!

Sure looks like it!!!

yes I am :) 5 USA ships 20 Russia's ships if a single missile went over a Russia ship those 5 ships been gone. you don't remember that :) they went to Syria to punish them for that gas attack. Putin said no your not. when Israel dropped nuclear weapon on Syria Putin put his weapons on alert announced to Israel do it again is all on war. as long as Putin is alive we are not bombing anyone again :). we are allowed to attack Isis but we only hit empty buildings last time I check. one was a farmer co op silo

please cite your source

absolutely I admire Putin. that man means what he says! follow him learn about him. see what he has done for Russia. we should take his advice. Putin told us the two chech brothers were up to no good. FBI I checked their fb said they were okay citizen. they bombed the Boston marathon Russia warned us long before. Putin is hilarious also. obamba asked for Mr snowden because snowden had sensitive info. Putin chuckled said nope he doesn't have anything we don't know . lol. yeah I wished we had a guy like that.

yellow it was back in Aug 2013 Google Syria USA Russian warships so easy to find and that event was all over the news stop challenging me. u can Google too and get the news.

when someone posts in a debate forum, it should be up to them to cite the source. I already did the work last debate

.yes I am :) 5 USA ships 20 Russia's ships if a single missile went over a Russia ship those 5 ships been gone. you don't remember that :) they went to Syria to punish them for that gas attack. Putin said no your not. when Israel dropped nuclear weapon on Syria Putin put his weapons on alert announced to Israel do it again is all on war. as long as Putin is alive we are not bombing anyone again :). we are allowed to attack Isis but we only hit empty buildings last time I check. one was a farmer co op silo.."

Sorry. Did I miss a memo? WHEN ISRAEL DROPPED NUCLEAR WEAPON ON SYRIA???? You got a date when Syria got 'nuked', because I think CNN missed reporting it.

As far as 'cooking the books' on intel, it happens far more often than we would care to admit. You have of course those at the very top who have a political agenda to show the war is going as well (or poorly) as they need it to. For those down the food chain, nuanced intel makes the tactics they suggested look good. For others it's an economic agenda. They have a job with a military contractor locked up down the road should the military purchase a certain weapons system. Bomb damage assessment can be cooked to make the weapon look like a better performer than it was.

Without quality intel, decisions get made that are only as good as what was provided. Men and women in the field put their lives in the hands of people telling them the truth about the enemy they face. I seem to recall the hue and cry that Bush lied about WMD's. Obviously Obama is lying now. Not seeing the press stampeding the White House wanting to know what Obama knew and when he knew it.....Just sayin'

I am no fan of Putin, but I can understand why he is taking this opportunity to move in troops.

Protecting the Assad regime is not his only motivation. ISIS has a large contingent of Chechen commanders.

This could be as much a move against them in a chaotic region with a mass exodus of refugees that is taking the worlds attention away from what is happening on the ground and opening a window for some old scorched earth tactics they used during the second chechen war.

Time will tell.. But I won't be surprised if we see some headless chechen bodies hanging from a bridge in the near future.

Putin is also building a presence in the middle east focused on Syria. They have expanded their naval base and moved in ground forces.

...but Israel dropping a nuke on Syria???? please.

And even though Obama is a wus, the US navy outclasses the Russian navy by a huge margin.