Another Snowden Bombshell

This time it's the budget of the 16 intelligence agencies that keep us safe and secure from terrors inside and outside this country.  The Washington Post has published an extensive article including excerpts from the intelligence budget itself. Some of the more interesting facts that jump out at you:

• We have sixteen spy agencies, employing 107,035 and spending over $55 billion a year, which is more than we were spending in the Cold War.  We spend the money on data collection, data analysis, management (including facilities and support) and data processing and exploitation.
• The CIA spends the most ($14.7 billion), including such activities as secret prisons, a controversial interrogation program, the deployment of lethal drones and a huge expansion of its counterterrorism center. It is now more of a paramilitary force than a spy agency
• Our priorities in terms of countries: China, Russia, Iran, Cuba and Israel and in terms of activities: combating terrorism, stopping the spread of nuclear and other unconventional weapons, warning U.S. leaders about critical events overseas, defending against foreign espionage, and conducting cyber-operations.