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Friday Sync-Up: Public Attitudes on U.S. Intelligence
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Friday Sync-Up: Public Attitudes on U.S. Intelligence

Every Friday, I present a topic or question for subscribers to discuss in an open ...

Every Friday, I present a topic or question for subscribers to discuss in an open thread. Here is this week’s conversation starter:

A new study is out on American perceptions of U.S. Intelligence agencies. The following is just one of the many interesting findings of the report:

An overwhelming majority of Americans rate U.S. intelligence agencies as capable in accomplishing their specialized missions, with more than eight in 10 rating the IC as effective or highly effective in preventing terrorist attacks (85 percent) and uncovering the plans of U.S. adversaries (83 percent). However, barely half of Americans (52 percent) believe that U.S. intelligence agencies are effective at safeguarding citizens’ privacy rights and civil liberties.

Question: Do you perceive the U.S. Intelligence Community (IC) to be competent at its core missions? Do you trust the IC to respect and protect your rights and civil liberties?

Klon Kitchen is a managing director at Beacon Global Strategies and a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.

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