Panetta to run CIA? Sorry, bad idea! And a quick search of the Web shows why: Panetta has absolutely no experience with the intelligence community. Nada… Zip…
Ummm, here’s my suggestion… Let’s replace Panetta with one of our writers – Gerry Ashley. Gerry has limited experience in the USAF and the NSA – just a 3 or 4 years. But from a technical standpoint, he’s far more qualified for the mission of CIA chief than Panetta. Besides, Gerry is a decent, sober, practical, non-partisan, bright, honorable, and a no-BS workaholic. Heck, it doesn’t even have to be Gerry… Most of us know someone with similar character traits who have been burdened with (and handled) the load of dirty and dangerous secrets. Maybe he’s a police chief or a soldier… Maybe an airport security person or a Coast Guardsman. The country is littered with them.
But nooo. It looks like Obama is embracing a career politician whose foremost qualification to head the CIA seems to be that he has no “Taint of the Dubya”.
As a conservative (and perhaps like many conservatives), I’ve been pleasantly surprised (read “not horrified”) with Barack’s choices. In the broader palette of Burris, Blago, Franken, Rush, Reid, and Richardson I’ve been able to sit back, throw up my hands, and gloat that it serves us right. In an “id” sort of way, there’s almost a tinge of humor to this whole farce. Think of Ozzie Osborne.
But that farce stops with the stuff of 9/11. The president elect should seek out the best to lead the CIA; he should not simply appoint a crony. For Christ’s sake, this is serious.
Mr. Obama, the head of the CIA has no time for on-the-job training. So please find someone else—someone who is even remotely capable for such an important position. Even if it’s just my friend Gerry.
Alan Speakman
January 6, 2009 at 11:34 am |
Panetta has one quality.. he hugs Hillary C.. and it appears Obama is letting her run the world .. while he plays comic figurehead.
January 6, 2009 at 12:49 pm |
Richard, that’s a very good point. Yet another Clinton crony back on the public payroll. So much for “change,” eh?
January 6, 2009 at 3:04 pm |
[...] that looks so, uh… familiar. It’s been brought to my attention (OK, OK… see a previous rant by Alan) that Leon Pannetta has been tapped to head up the CIA. At first, I thought this sounded like a [...]