Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo slammed the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) for its recent woke recruitment video that encouraged Americans to “command your space” and “be unapologetically you.”
“When I was Director of the CIA, we valued individuals based on their talent and skill, not their race or sexuality,” Pompeo wrote. “I’ll never forget what one female analyst said to me: ‘Thank you for valuing me for my work. I want my abilities and achievements to define me, not my sexuality.’”
“The collection of incredibly talented patriots serving America at the CIA is what makes it the best spy agency in the world — and we must continue to recruit the best and brightest,” Pompeo added. “We can’t afford to risk our national security to appease some liberal, woke agenda.”
The collection of incredibly talented patriots serving America at the CIA is what makes it the best spy agency in the world — and we must continue to recruit the best and brightest. We can’t afford to risk our national security to appease some liberal, woke agenda.
— Mike Pompeo (@mikepompeo) May 4, 2021
The CIA recruitment video features an anonymous official, who describes her story as the daughter of immigrants.
“When I was 17 I quoted Zora Neale Hurston’s ‘How It Feels to Be Colored Me’ in my college application essay. The line that spoke to me stated simply, ‘I am not tragically colored. There is no sorrow dammed up in my soul, nor lurking behind my eyes. I do not mind at all,’” she recounted. “At 17, I had no idea what life would bring but Zora’s sentiment articulated so beautifully how I felt as a daughter of immigrants how I felt then and now. Nothing about me was or is tragic. I am perfectly made.”
“I am a woman of color. I am a mom. I am a cis-gendered Millennial who has been diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder,” she continued. “I am intersectional, but my existence is not a box-checking exercise. I am a walking declaration, a woman whose inflection does not rise at the end of her sentences, suggesting that a question has been asked.”
“I used to struggle with imposture syndrome, but at 36, I refuse to internalize misguided, patriarchal ideas of what a woman can or should be. I am tired of feeling like I’m supposed to apologize for the space I occupy rather than intoxicate people with my effort, my brilliance,” the official added. “I am proud of me, full stop. My parents left everything they knew and loved to expose me to opportunities they never had. Because of them, I stand here today a proud first generation Latina and officer at CIA.”
“I am unapologetically you and I want you to be unapologetically you, whoever you are,” she concluded.
"I am unapologetically me. I want you to be unapologetically you, whoever you are. Whether you work at #CIA, or anywhere else in the world.
Command your space. Mija, you are worth it."
— CIA (@CIA) April 28, 2021
Many other prominent Republicans have also criticized the video. Earlier this week, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) said, “We’ve come a long way from Jason Bourne.”
“If you’re a Chinese communist, or an Iranian Mullah, or Kim Jong Un…would this scare you?” Cruz tweeted, sharing the CIA’s recruitment ad. “We’ve come a long way from Jason Bourne.”
If you’re a Chinese communist, or an Iranian Mullah, or Kim Jong Un…would this scare you?
We’ve come a long way from Jason Bourne. https://t.co/HW8Eh9UdXa
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) May 4, 2021