Former CIA Director John Brennan had a meltdown over the firing of officials leading the National Intelligence Council.
The Obama-era official explained to MSNBC that he was “livid” about news that Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard fired Mike Collins, the acting chair of the National Intelligence Council, and his deputy, Maria Langan-Riekhof.
Fox News Digital reported on the terminations, citing senior intelligence officials who said the former employees were “radically opposed to Trump.”
“This whole thing just makes me livid,” Brennan told MSNBC’s Nicolle Wallace, defending the fired officials as two of the “most experienced, accomplished, and talented analysts in the entire U.S. intelligence community.”
John Brennan is blowing a gasket over Tulsi Gabbard’s firing of ‘deep state’ heads of the National Intelligence Council:
“This whole thing just makes me livid.”
Brennan’s rage serves as a ringing endorsement. pic.twitter.com/GmKtlVAXNL
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) May 14, 2025
Brennan went on to tout the duo’s “capabilities, their competence, their integrity” and claimed they “served as role models for a generation of intelligence officers inside of CIA.”
He went on to claim that the firings are a “tangible example of such dangerous and insidious corruption within the Trump administration.”
According to Fox News:
Collins also has whistleblower complaints against him for political bias and “deliberately undermining the incoming Trump administration,” officials said.
They added that Collins was closely associated with Michael Morrell, the former deputy director of the CIA who worked to write a public letter in 2020 claiming that Hunter Biden’s laptop had “all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation,” and to get signatures from top ex-intelligence officials.
As for Langan-Reikhof, officials said she has been a “key advocate” for diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, and is someone who whistleblowers allege is “radically opposed to Trump.”
The National Intelligence Council was moved by Gabbard to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence in order to “directly hold accountable any improper action and politicization of intelligence,” according to the outlet.
The National Intelligence Council “has always been a DNI component. It makes sense for them to be physically located at DNI,” a CIA official told Fox News Digital.
One official said that “plans to eliminate non-essential offices within ODNI that we know are housing deep state leakers are underway.”
Brennan’s anger at the firings proved to social media users to be a solid endorsement of Gabbard’s decision.
Well, if he is upset, then she just did the right thing!
Frankly, if you’ve been working since the 1990s, it’s time for you to take a hike anyway!
Bye ✌️— Kathleen Winchell ❤️ (@KathleenWinche3) May 14, 2025
If John Brennan isn’t angry, Tulsi isn’t doing her job.
— MAZE (@mazemoore) May 15, 2025
When John Brennan is losing, America is winning.
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) May 15, 2025
He just confirmed that BOTH were 100% deep state assets.
— AwakenedOutlaw⚒️ (@AwakenedOutlaw) May 15, 2025
Over the deep state target. I love it!!
— Puncher75 (@Puncher522) May 15, 2025
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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida. Powers also contributes to BizPac Review.
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