Ex-director Mike Pompeo says in CIA ‘we lied, we cheated, we stole’

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo boasted, “I was the CIA director. We lied, we cheated, we stole. We had entire training courses. It reminds you of the glory of the American experiment.”

Mike Pompeo made these remarks at an event at Texas A&M University on April 15, 2019.

The State Department published an official transcript of the speech, titled “Why Diplomacy Matters,” which confirms the former CIA director’s comments.

The full passage from the State Department transcript follows:

“But in terms of how you think about problem sets, I – when I was a cadet, what’s the first – what’s the cadet motto at West Point? You will not lie, cheat, or steal, or tolerate those who do. I was the CIA director. We lied, we cheated, we stole. (Laughter.) It’s – it was like – we had entire training courses. (Applause.) It reminds you of the glory of the American experiment.”