Leon Panetta to head CIA
Posted by Clyde Middleton
on Jan 5 2009 Filed under Politics.
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UPDATE: Politico reporting that Dianne ain’t happy: “I was not informed about the selection of Leon Panetta to be the CIA Director. I know nothing about this, other than what I’ve read,” said Senator Feinstein, who will chair the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence in the 111th Congress. / “My position has consistently been that I believe the Agency is best-served by having an intelligence professional in charge at this time.”
Leon Panetta to head CIA. This oughta be interesting. Another pick just like the old picks – Jimmy Carter v2.0 in a Clinton (pant)suit.
From the House to Clinton’s Chief of Staff to CIA. He’s been killing time at the Panetta Institute: “A nonpartisan center for the study of public policy, the Panetta Institute helps our communities and our country meet the challenges of the 21st century. We work in particular to attract thoughtful young men and women to lives of public service, helping them expand their knowledge of the policy process and develop their skills as future leaders.”
His committee posts in the House were:
Chairman of the U.S. House Committee on the Budget
Chairman of the Agriculture Committee’s Subcommittee on Domestic Marketing, Consumer Relations, and Nutrition
Chairman of the Administration Committee’s Subcommittee on Personnel and Police
Chairman of the Task Force on Domestic Hunger created by the U.S. House Select Committee on Hunger
Vice Chairman of the Caucus of Vietnam-Era Veterans in Congress
Member of the President’s Commission on Foreign Language and International Studies.
So his defense/intelligence qualifications seem to reside in the lectures he hosted through the institute, such as this one: “The Role of the Military and Intelligence in National Security,” with former Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Peter Pace (USMC-Ret.); former Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Armed Forces Southern Command and national security and terrorism analyst for NBC News, General Barry McCaffrey (USA-Ret.); and John Arquilla, Professor of Defense Analysis at the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School
At least perhaps we can expect the nutrition of agents in the field to increase – nothing like a good diet to help you surveil bad guys.
Politico gives us a little more bio (in part):
From 1964 to 1966, he served as First Lieutenant in the U.S. Army and received the Army Commendation Medal. He worked as a U.S. Senate legislative assistant and then became Director of the U.S. Office for Civil Rights for the Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare, and later as Executive Assistant to the Mayor of New York City.
Currently, he co-directs the Leon & Sylvia Panetta Institute for Public Policy with a particular focus on inspiring young men and women to lives of leadership and public service. He serves on many public policy and organizational boards. Among his work, Mr. Panetta serves as Chairman of the Pew Oceans Commission and Co-Chair of the Joint Ocean Commission Initiative. He previously served as a member of the Iraq Study Group, a bipartisan committee established at the urging of Congress; as a member of the Independent Task Force on Immigration and America’s Future; and as the Co-Chair of the California Council on Base Support and Retention.
So a couple of years military – never past 1st Lt. But the ocean thing sounds interesting.
Perhaps his real qualification was that he dumped Hillary early in the campaign. Bet early and often on the winner – good move, Leon. paid off.
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