Word: websterisms
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...become director of Central Intelligence. As the CIA's deputy director and a close ally of his disabled former boss, William Casey, Gates had come under fire for his involvement in Iranscam, and his chances for Senate confirmation were looking dim. In Gates' place Reagan nominated FBI Director William Webster, a former judge who is widely respected for his integrity. By selecting Webster, the President won the same bipartisan kudos he had received for the appointments of Baker and recently installed NSC Director Frank Carlucci. Significantly, none of the three is a red-white-and-blue Reaganite. All are notably...
Behind the patrician style is a demanding boss. "He holds everybody accountable, and you damn sure better have the right answers," says former Aide David Divan. Webster, who insists on making every important decision and many minor ones himself, is notoriously slow to make up his mind. Yet he has proved receptive to creative, and politically risky, ideas. He introduced an ( effective counterterrorism program at the FBI; in recent years agents have successfully infiltrated several terrorist groups. He does not reject outright the notion of capturing wanted criminals and terrorists overseas and bringing them to the U.S. to stand trial...
Despite this, Webster often admonished his FBI colleagues that the end does not justify the means. Fretting over a request to bug the chambers of a Chicago judge, he told an associate, "We have to take a strategic look. Even if we win, do we lose? Are they going to say we will be in the confessional next?" He ultimately approved the bugging, but insisted the conversations could be recorded only when agents watching the judge's chambers had good reason to suspect that the visitor would offer a bribe. The case, known as Operation Greylord, resulted in the conviction...
...Webster's passion for the law will shape his first days at CIA headquarters in Langley, Va. Former CIA Director William Casey moved the CIA's office of legal counsel to a Virginia office building miles from Langley, demoralizing agency lawyers and symbolizing his indifference to their work. At FBI headquarters Webster keeps his legal specialists a few steps away and is sure to continue that practice when he moves across the river. "Adherence to the rule of law, both nationally and internationally, is a very important principle," he said last week...
...Webster prepares for his Senate hearings, he is likely to have little time for his fiercely competitive tennis games or his weekends on the farm in rural Missouri. A widower with three grown children, Webster seldom drinks anything stronger than soda pop and is a devout Christian Scientist. A history and poetry buff, he is fond of quoting Lincoln and John Kennedy, a choice that displays admirable bipartisanship, if nothing else...