Pick of former congressman alternately questioned and
praised
In a surprise move, former San Benito County Congressman Leon
Panetta was named this week as President-elect Barack Obama’s
choice for director of the Central Intelligence Agency.
Panetta, 70, was director of the Office of Management and Budget
and White House chief of staff during much of the Bill Clinton
administration. More recently, the Carmel Valley resident has
served as director of the Leon and Sylvia Panetta Institute for
Public Policy, a leadership nonprofit based at California State
University, Monterey Bay.
Pick of former congressman alternately questioned and praised
In a surprise move, former San Benito County Congressman Leon Panetta was named this week as President-elect Barack Obama’s choice for director of the Central Intelligence Agency.
Panetta, 70, was director of the Office of Management and Budget and White House chief of staff during much of the Bill Clinton administration. More recently, the Carmel Valley resident has served as director of the Leon and Sylvia Panetta Institute for Public Policy, a leadership nonprofit based at California State University, Monterey Bay.
Panetta’s reputation over eight terms in Congress was that of a bipartisan leader. Panetta worked in the Richard Nixon White House before changing party affiliation. He remains a Democrat.
Obama’s nomination of Panetta reportedly came as a surprise to California Sen. Diane Feinstein, who bristled when asked about the choice by reporters.
“My position has consistently been that I believe the agency is best-served by having an intelligence professional in charge at this time,” Feinstein said.
The nomination was greeted enthusiastically by Panetta’s successor in Congress.
“I’m excited that Leon’s experience and expertise will be put to good use in Washington,” Rep. Sam Farr said in a statement. “Leon is a great manager and he’ll be taking over an agency that needs a firm hand on the rudder.
“This appointment is another sign that the status quo won’t stand under this new administration. It signals a break from the past, and I’m looking forward to working with Leon and Pesident Obama in the coming months.”
Panetta has been a vocal critic of the CIA’s interrogation techniques during the Bush administration.
Sen. Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat who is a member of the Intelligence Committee, praised Panetta as a pick to lead the CIA, hoping that if he gets the job, it will lead to the agency being more transparent about its practices.
“For too long, our nation’s intelligence community has operated under a policy of questionable effectiveness and legality in which consulting two members of the Senate Intelligence Committee counted as consulting with Congress,” he said.
“I look forward to working with Mr. Panetta to declassify much of the story of what went wrong at the CIA these last eight years, so that we can both take steps to make Americans safer and protect the values that define us as Americans.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
