Ted Mack, Redux*
(* A reference that will make sense only to those of us who are really old.)
OK, things have quieted down on the intelligence front now that Gen. Hayden has been confirmed as the new CIA Director with no serious opposition. In a way, I am kind of relieved. Gen. Hayden at least knows what intelligence is supposed to be, even if I disagree with what that is. Of course, my view on things is colored by my view of the Bill of Rights and my having lived through the '60's and '70's.
With that in mind, I must still admit to being quite taken with the Russian view of the change in leadership of the CIA as noted in the Russian News Service Novosti. The author of this piece, Gennady Yevstafyev, is a retired Lieutenant General of Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service and a senior adviser with the Russia's Center for Policy Studies.
Air Force General Michael Hayden has been sworn in as CIA director and, unlike his predecessor, also as Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte's deputy. This signifies his subordination and the end of CIA's once unquestioned authority within the U.S. intelligence community.
But the most interesting development is the appearance of a surprising figure in the new CIA leadership. When now-retired CIA director Porter Goss started a purge several years ago, he dismissed quite a few top professionals. Analysts say that this purge looked a lot like personal revenge against those who stood in Goss' way, first when he was an undercover agent and then when he was chairman of the House Intelligence Committee.
One of his victims was Deputy Director of Operations Stephen Kappes, a former Moscow bureau chief. Kappes is now poised to return to the CIA's No. 2 post, and he will most likely bring with him some a few more former victims, above all his successor in Moscow, Michael Sulick. This will renew the power struggle within the CIA over the quest to correctly answer the question, "Who is to blame" over the Iraq question. Then, more heads will roll.
Russian security experts say Stephen Kappes was a leading authority on WMDs, but that was back when a Democrat sat in the White House. Peter Hoekstra (R-MI), Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said recently that Kappes' return signifies the victory of CIA bureaucrats, who have resisted George Bush's reforms.
General Hayden responded to this criticism by stating that Kappes' return meant that amateur hour at the CIA was over.
This alarming statement indicates that under Goss, the leadership of an agency of exceptional importance in regard to political and military decision-making were amateurs. This means that the fierce propaganda battle over Iran and its nuclear program was likely a political gamble by amateurish yes-men, who were quick to agree to what Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld wanted. [Emphasis added]
Well, yes, it is quite probable that the CIA under Porter Goss was filled with Bush sycophants. Every other federal slot was so filled, so why would the CIA and every other defense position be any different? The fact that such cronyism has so far led to so many deaths (9/11, 9/11, 9/11...Afghanistan, Iraq, Katrina, Sago Mines...) appallingly seems too much like business as usual.
What the Emperor and his minions have failed to realize is that the rest of the world is also watching and assessing. So far, this government continues to score failing marks.
I think more than the Director of the CIA needs to be replaced.
OK, things have quieted down on the intelligence front now that Gen. Hayden has been confirmed as the new CIA Director with no serious opposition. In a way, I am kind of relieved. Gen. Hayden at least knows what intelligence is supposed to be, even if I disagree with what that is. Of course, my view on things is colored by my view of the Bill of Rights and my having lived through the '60's and '70's.
With that in mind, I must still admit to being quite taken with the Russian view of the change in leadership of the CIA as noted in the Russian News Service Novosti. The author of this piece, Gennady Yevstafyev, is a retired Lieutenant General of Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service and a senior adviser with the Russia's Center for Policy Studies.
Air Force General Michael Hayden has been sworn in as CIA director and, unlike his predecessor, also as Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte's deputy. This signifies his subordination and the end of CIA's once unquestioned authority within the U.S. intelligence community.
But the most interesting development is the appearance of a surprising figure in the new CIA leadership. When now-retired CIA director Porter Goss started a purge several years ago, he dismissed quite a few top professionals. Analysts say that this purge looked a lot like personal revenge against those who stood in Goss' way, first when he was an undercover agent and then when he was chairman of the House Intelligence Committee.
One of his victims was Deputy Director of Operations Stephen Kappes, a former Moscow bureau chief. Kappes is now poised to return to the CIA's No. 2 post, and he will most likely bring with him some a few more former victims, above all his successor in Moscow, Michael Sulick. This will renew the power struggle within the CIA over the quest to correctly answer the question, "Who is to blame" over the Iraq question. Then, more heads will roll.
Russian security experts say Stephen Kappes was a leading authority on WMDs, but that was back when a Democrat sat in the White House. Peter Hoekstra (R-MI), Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said recently that Kappes' return signifies the victory of CIA bureaucrats, who have resisted George Bush's reforms.
General Hayden responded to this criticism by stating that Kappes' return meant that amateur hour at the CIA was over.
This alarming statement indicates that under Goss, the leadership of an agency of exceptional importance in regard to political and military decision-making were amateurs. This means that the fierce propaganda battle over Iran and its nuclear program was likely a political gamble by amateurish yes-men, who were quick to agree to what Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld wanted. [Emphasis added]
Well, yes, it is quite probable that the CIA under Porter Goss was filled with Bush sycophants. Every other federal slot was so filled, so why would the CIA and every other defense position be any different? The fact that such cronyism has so far led to so many deaths (9/11, 9/11, 9/11...Afghanistan, Iraq, Katrina, Sago Mines...) appallingly seems too much like business as usual.
What the Emperor and his minions have failed to realize is that the rest of the world is also watching and assessing. So far, this government continues to score failing marks.
I think more than the Director of the CIA needs to be replaced.
posted by Diane at 10:22 AM
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