Officials: CIA director met with Kim Jong Un
Associated Press
WASHINGTON
CIA Director Mike Pompeo recently traveled to North Korea to meet with leader Kim Jong Un, two U.S. officials said Tuesday.
The highly unusual, secret visit comes as the enemy nations prepare for a meeting between President Donald Trump and Kim, in what would be the first summit between U.S. and North Korea during more than six decades of hostility since the Korean War.
The officials spoke anonymously about Pompeo’s trip because they were not authorized to discuss it publicly.
The Washington Post, which first reported Pompeo’s meeting with Kim, said it took place over Easter weekend – just over two weeks ago, shortly after the CIA chief was nominated to become secretary of state.
Trump, who is currently at his Florida resort meeting with Japanese leader Shinzo Abe, said Tuesday that the U.S. and North Korea were having direct talks at “extremely high levels” in preparation for a possible summit with Kim.
But White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Trump and Kim have not spoken directly.
Trump is planning to meet with Kim by early June.
Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Tuesday thwarted a bipartisan effort to protect special counsel Robert Mueller’s job, saying he will not hold a floor vote on the legislation even if it is approved next week in the Senate Judiciary Committee.
McConnell said the bill is unnecessary because Trump will not fire Mueller.
“We’ll not be having this on the floor of the Senate,” McConnell said on Fox News.
His comments came amid widespread opposition to the bill among members of his caucus, with several GOP senators saying the bill is unconstitutional. Others said it’s simply not good politics to try and tell Trump what to do, likening the legislation to “poking the bear.”