Saturday, June 13, 2009

Too Many Intelligence Chiefs?

Let's see. We have Leon Panetta as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, James Jones as National Security Advisor and Dennis Blair as National Intelligence Director. Do we really need three? Especially since Panetta and Blair are engaged in a turf war with Jones as the designated referee?

It seems to me when we're at war on multiple fronts with more looming, it is not the most opportune time for these boys to be at one another's throats!

The issue is whether or not Blair, whose job was created after 9/11 to better coordinate intelligence efforts, should be allowed to place people of his choosing in our embassies. This has been under the purview of the CIA for decades. With 16 intelligence operations, the oversight for purposes of cooperation makes sense. Their unwillingness to share information is thought to have been a major factor in the 9/11 attacks. Would it be prudent of Mr. Blair to work on the cooperation end of the deal rather than creating conflict?

Granted, the CIA hasn't been doing the best job possible in recent years yet with Mr. Blair's plan I foresee a conflict of loyalties among the personnel which would lead right back to protecting information which has failed us before!

This hit the news yesterday noon full bore yet has disappeared from sight today. It didn't even last one news cycle and I was beginning to think I had imagined it. But no. With some searching, I found it today on Newsmax.com.

It is too serious an issue to be under reported. If it means embarrassing those involved then so be it. If Jones can't sort it out Obama had better. We wouldn't want the world to burn because our Intelligence operations are fiddling. Would we?

With Ahmadinejad having won the Iranian election, we have a pretty good idea how his masters feel about the U.S. We're going to need all the good intelligence we can muster!

2 comments:

Margie's Musings said...

Oh yes!

Anonymous said...

Ego and power...a dangerous combination. CU