Cliff Sims

Now, to be in the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, you have to have the highest security clearance that the US government offers.

I mean, these people that are in this office see, to your point, everything.

I mean, they're preparing the president's daily brief every day.

So they are seeing the most sensitive intelligence that the US government has.

Well, when we got there, you know, naturally, kind of the senior team wants to be in the room to hear, let's get the briefing too.

Let's get the briefing with the director.

And they kicked everyone out of the room.

Are you serious?

Kicked everyone out of the room.

Said, we're here to give the briefing to the director.

And so even the people who saw all the most sensitive stuff in the U.S.

government, that's how sensitive they were about being willing to brief that.

And that's about all I can say about it.

And so it sounds like, how did that start?

So, Yellowhammer is a state bird of Alabama.

I was based in Alabama.

That's where the name came from.

But I had worked on a campaign in 2010.

It was the first thing I ever did in politics.

It was a big year in Alabama because, people don't realize this now, Republicans had not been in control of Alabama politically in 136 years since Reconstruction.