Michael Morell speaks with retired four-star U.S. Navy Admiral James Stavridis

Considered as a potential vice-presidential running mate by Hillary Clinton and as a potential Secretary of State by Trump

Maine Writer- Admiral Stavridis commentary is appreciated because he speaks with clarity. This echo podcast transcript (highlighted quotes) provides an example about how well Admiral Stavridis communicates complicated issues in "plain speak".

Transcript: Admiral James Stavridis talks with Michael Morell on "Intelligence Matters"

• On case of Navy (former) SEAL Eddie Gallagher*: "That these particular cases and other cases dealing with war crimes are best adjudicated by the military, because they occur in the crucible of combat. For a president or any other very senior official to reach into that mix I think is a mistake. Most recently, in the case of Chief Gallagher, we saw the president reach in and say, "No, you can keep that Trident pin, you get to stay a member of the community," it would have been far better for him to let a panel of SEALs make that judgment. I think that was a mistake."
• On value of alliances: "I do not want to see 'America First' turn into 'America Alone.' It has not yet, and America First is okay as an idea. Certainly, we want to put our country first, but not at the expense of these alliances…By using alliances, by recognizing that no one of us, no one nation, no one person, no one leader, no one of us is as smart as all of us thinking together, using that approach, we can create the sum of all security in the 21st century."
• On cohesive interagency process: "We are so much stronger as a nation when the CIA, the FBI, the DOJ, the DEA, the Department of Defense, Department of State, when we are working and pulling together as an interagency. Again, that's how you create the sum of all security, not allowing little stovepipes to stand."

*New York Times report by Dave Philipps - Navy SEALs showed up one by one, wearing hoodies and T-shirts instead of uniforms, to tell investigators what they had seen. Visibly nervous, they shifted in their chairs, rubbed their palms and pressed their fists against their foreheads. At times they stopped in midsentence and broke into tears.

“Sorry about this,” Special Operator First Class Craig Miller, one of the most experienced SEALs in the group, said as he looked sideways toward a blank wall, trying to hide that he was weeping. “It’s the first time — I’m really broken up about this.”