Morell added that “Senior leaders in our military have stated publicly that the leaks by Ms. Manning put the lives of US soldiers at risk.”
Interestingly, Morell describes himself as “neither a registered Democrat nor a registered Republican,” in an August 2016 op-ed the New York Times. Morell has worked for both Democratic and Republican administrations. He endorsed Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election.
CIA Director Mike Pompeo, scheduled for an appearance at Harvard on Thursday, echoed Morell’s tone in his own letter to Harvard. Director Pompeo called his withdrawal from speaking a choice “he did not make lightly,” labeling Manning an “American traitor.”
“I believe it is shameful for Harvard to place its stamp of approval upon her treasonous actions.”
Manning delivered the leaked data to Wikileaks in one of the largest classified information breaches in U.S. history. In his first speech to the Agency in April, Director Pompeo labeled Wikileaks a stateless, “hostile intelligence service,” aligned with America’s adversaries.
