The problem is that the real conflict the US faces is whether it should let its foreign policy be run by facts, or whether the intelligence agencies are simply there to manufacture consent for whatever the ruling party has decided to invade next. In the latter case the intelligence on the ground doesn't actually matter, so there's no political pressure to make sure it's done well.
Yeah the recent revelation of this episode certainly made it more difficult to stomach the various retired intelligence blowhards making the rounds of the news programs this morning to firmly declare risible canards like "Intelligence is about the Truth!" Somehow getting one's clearance lifted seems less draconian than overseeing the deaths of multitudes...
The problem is that the real conflict the US faces is whether it should let its foreign policy be run by facts, or whether the intelligence agencies are simply there to manufacture consent for whatever the ruling party has decided to invade next. In the latter case the intelligence on the ground doesn't actually matter, so there's no political pressure to make sure it's done well.