Bush nominates new CIA chief
Bush nominates new CIA chief
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Monday, 08, May 2006 07:49
President Bush has nominated Air Force General Michael Hayden to replace Porter Goss as head of the US' Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
Mr Goss, who announced his resignation last Friday, was forced to leave after the exit of a series of high-level officials and friction with national security director John Negroponte made his position untenable.
Many have expressed concern at President Bush's choice of the man to replace him, arguing that General Hayden of the US Air Force may be too close to the Pentagon to be a truly impartial CIA director.
Most notably, former presidential candidate Senator John Kerry has said he is "troubled" by the post and has "deep reservations" about General Hayden's superiority, something that President Bush – who still has to get his nominee confirmed by Congress – may find problematic.
"In the confirmation process, I look forward to meeting with the leaders of the Congress, better understanding their concerns and working with them to move the American intelligence community forward," General Hayden commented in response to his nomination.
"This is simply too important not to get absolutely right," he said.
General Hayden has already served as director of the National Security Agency (NSA) and was the brainchild for the phone-tapping policy employed by security services in the 'war on terror'.
US lawmakers proved they are capable of rejecting the president's decision when they spurned Harriet Myers as a nominee for the supreme court last year.
Although White House staffers are confident that the Senate will approve their nominee, it is likely that lawmakers will want to carefully examine General Hayden's credentials extensively before allowing him to run what he himself admitted was the most important intelligence role in the US.
"There is probably no post more important in preserving both our security and values as a people than the head of the Central Intelligence Agency," he said.