Top Trump administration officials say they are not the writer of a New York Times opinion piece sharply critical of President Donald Trump. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spoke on the issue during his visit to India. He called the opinion piece “sad.” He criticized the media for what he said were its efforts to “undermine this administration.” Vice President Mike Pence also denied writing the opinion piece. His deputy chief of staff said Pence’s office is “above such amateur acts.” The director of national intelligence, Dan Coats, released a statement denying that he or his top deputy wrote the piece. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin also issued denials. The Times said the writer is a senior administration official whose job would be at risk if the person's identity were to be made public. The opinion piece says that Trump’s staff often takes action to block the president from action. The writer of the piece says he or she wants Americans to know that “there are adults in the room.” The writer describes the president as “impetuous, adversarial, petty and ineffective.”