Word: panetta
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Whatever Leon Panetta lacked in formal intel experience he would make up for with his political smarts. That was one of the chief points made in his favor when the Obama Administration named the former California Congressman and Clinton White House chief of staff as its CIA director. So many CIA veterans were not happy over the summer, when they felt that Panetta had failed to protect the agency from the political backlash over its Bush-era detention and interrogation practices. "There was a feeling [Panetta] had not done enough to defend the CIA from the politicians," says a former...
Lately, however, Panetta has put those doubts to rest, winning kudos from his troops for successfully defending the agency's turf from Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair. The mood at Langley has always been difficult to measure, since insiders are not allowed to speak to the media. But several former CIA veterans who remain in contact with serving colleagues say spirits were lifted in recent weeks when the White House ruled in the agency's favor on two disputes with the DNI. "People are more upbeat than they have been in a long time," says a retired station chief...
When Blair and Panetta were appointed by President Obama, the question was still unanswered, and the matter was taken to the NSC for adjudication. In May, when Blair issued a directive claiming the right, "in rare circumstances," to nominate a non-CIA person as the top intel official in foreign missions, Panetta immediately took issue with it, and the dispute quickly escalated. (See the top 10 CIA movies...
...This was a symbolic fight - it's about who's in charge of the playground," says Amy Zegart, a UCLA professor and national-security expert. "Blair was trying to show who's boss, and Panetta was trying to protect the power of an agency that's going through a difficult time...
With the NSC and Jones unable to come to a judgment, the matter was taken up to Biden, who held at least two meetings with Panetta and Blair over the past several months. Biden's office, the CIA and the DNI have all refused to comment on these meetings, but officials familiar with the deliberations say that last month the Vice President came down on Panetta's side. (See six ways...