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An unprecedented pre-presidential-inauguration feud between Donald Trump and intelligence agencies that soon will be under his command could harm US security if not quickly defused, current and former government officials said.
They said morale at the CIA and other agencies was already sagging because of disputes with Trump over whether Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered interference in the US election and over leaks about an unsubstantiated dossier compiled by a private security firm suggesting Moscow had compromising information on Trump.
Unless addressed, the disputes could prompt the departure of personnel and lead those who remain to take fewer risks to counter security threats, the officials said.
"People shooting at (the CIA) is pretty common. But usually it's not the President," one former senior US official said.
Trump's transition team did not reply to email messages seeking comment.
"I think it's a recipe for disaster," said Daniel Benjamin, who served in senior White House and State Department counter-terrorism posts under Democratic presidents. Benjamin, now at Dartmouth College, said there was a "strong chance" people would leave and they have "tremendous value" to the private sector.
Complicating the situation just a week before Republican Trump is sworn in, two of his nominees for top security posts set a different tone at their Senate confirmation hearings, heaping praise on the men and women who work in the secret world of intelligence gathering.
Separately, Trump's nominee for US defense secretary, James Mattis, told senators that he had a "very, very high degree of confidence" in US intelligence agencies. Mattis also put Russia at the top of a list of threats to US interests.
A top official at one intelligence agency said a growing number of intelligence officers over the age of 50 and with at least 20 years of service, including at least five years overseas, have drafted and in many cases signed but not dated their resignation letters.
The latest round of rancour began with a CNN report that Trump had been briefed on 6 January by intelligence and law enforcement chiefs on a two-page memo summarising the unverified claims in the dossier.
Spy chief Clapper called Trump before dinnertime on Wednesday to calm the waters. Trump and Clapper differed on what was said in the phone conversation.
On Friday, Trump appeared to again blame US spies for the leak.
US intelligence agency personnel "are kind of shell-shocked at being accused of being Nazis and intentionally leaking this stuff", the former senior official said.
The 17 US intelligence agencies have combined budgets of more than $70 billion and tens of thousands of employees. They are responsible for everything from warning of terrorist attacks to supporting American troops on the battlefield and analysing the impacts of global trends such as climate change.
But Douglas Wise, a former senior CIA official, said it will be harder for Trump to "beat up" on his own intelligence chiefs once they are in place instead of officials appointed by Democratic President Barack Obama.
"I think things are going to change," Wise said.
Still, tensions seem likely to persist after Inauguration Day on 20 January.
"What Pompeo said was somewhat reassuring, but it's not at all clear whether that matters, or whether Trump's apparent attitude and Flynn's bitterness toward us is what counts," the second senior intelligence official said.
(This story has been published in an arrangement with Reuters)
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