From the New York Times, I'm Michael Babaro. This is the deal.

Last week, CNN broke the story that the US had secretly exfiltrated a top spy from Russia

back in 2017. What that means now for US intelligence. It's Monday, September 16.

So Julian, tell me about the story that you had been reporting out.

A few months ago, my colleague Adam Goldman and I started doing some reporting about a key CIA asset

who had been offered exfiltration from Russia by the CIA. And we knew that this source was

the main person who told the CIA, who told the entire intelligence community that Vladimir Putin

interfered in the election in favored Donald Trump. So this person was really important and what

happened to this person was a little bit of a mystery.

Julian Barnes covers national security for the times.

Anytime you're trying to report about sensitive intelligence, it's extremely slow going.

I had one conversation with a person who, as I was asking the question, he said, stop. I do not

want to hear that question. I do not want you to ask me that question. So it's very painstaking

work. But last week, as I was doing reporting, I learned that a cable network was onto one of the

stories I was working on. But it was Friday and I was nervous, but I let that go. Cross your

fingers and went home for the day. Cross your fingers, go home.

And Monday morning, I got a call that CNN was going to report the story.

Good morning, I'm Jim Sudo in New York. And I'm Poppy Harlow. We're so glad you're with us

this Monday morning. And we do begin with a really significant CNN exclusive and Jim. And I was like,

oh, oh, this is your reporting. You have learned about a highly secret of intelligence operation

by the United States. That's right, Poppy. Multiple Trump administration officials with direct knowledge

tell me that in a previously undisclosed secret mission in 2017, the US successfully extracted

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