Lawmakers Object as Bush Picks Hayden for CIA

09/05/2006| IslamWeb

President George W. Bush named Michael Hayden to lead the     CIA, despite lawmakers' objections to a military general heading the civilian spy agency.

Bush called on the US Senate to "promptly" confirm the air force general.

Hayden, currently Negroponte's deputy, was nominated after Porter Goss abruptly resigned as the CIA director on Friday, after less than two years in the post.

Several top CIA officials resigned during Goss's tenure. Reports said Goss may have been forced out because of turmoil in the agency in the wake of highly publicized intelligence failures related to the September 11, 2001 attacks and intelligence used to justify the Iraq war.

Many Washington lawmakers have expressed doubts about Hayden's independence from the White House and about whether a military officer, who now answers to the powerful Defense Department, should take over the civilian agency.

Concerns expressed by top Republican and Democratic lawmakers have laid the groundwork for what could be a new battle for the White House with Congress over the nomination.

Some lawmakers were critical of Hayden's involvement in a controversial domestic spying program.

Hayden oversaw the National Security Agency's secret wiretapping without a warrant put in place after the September 11, 2001 attacks.

Former CIA director Stansfield Turner, a retired navy admiral, said that Hayden's role in the domestic eavesdropping program spelled trouble for his nomination.

Representative Peter Hoekstra (news, bio, voting record), the Republican chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said the dual roles of spymaster and military officer are incompatible.

"There is no question that general Hayden is an outstanding military officer and a strong leader with a proven history in the intelligence community," Hoekstra said in a statement. He said a civilian head of the CIA is needed in the interest of "balance".

"By placing a military officer atop the CIA ... we risk losing the critical, civilian intelligence analysis that policymakers need when making foreign policy decisions," he said.

Bush said however that he views Hayden's military background as an asset.

Director of National Intelligence Negroponte on Monday likewise defended his top deputy to head the CIA, saying he felt certain that Hayden would not cave in to pressure from the Pentagon.

Negroponte said the choice of Hayden underscore's the president's commitment to restore morale among the CIA disheartened workers, while improving the "human intelligence" component of the agency's activities.

But Bush's priority, which Negroponte said Hayden is uniquely qualified to oversee, is the international fight against terrorism.

PHOTO CAPTION

(R-L) US President George W. Bush listens to his nominee to be the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), General Michael V. Hayden, as Director of National Intelligence John D. Negroponte looks on during the Oval Office announcement at the White House in Washington, DC. (AFP)