Panetta to Be Named C.I.A. Director

[one...two...tree 2,762]

President-elect Barack Obama has selected Leon E. Panetta, the former congressman and White House chief of staff, to take over the Central Intelligence Agency, an organization that Mr. Obama criticized during the campaign for using interrogation methods he decried as torture, Democratic officials said Monday.

Mr. Panetta has a reputation in Washington as a competent manager with strong background in budget issues, but has little hands-on intelligence experience. If confirmed by the Senate, he will take control of the agency most directly responsible for hunting senior Al Qaeda leaders around the globe, but one that has been buffeted since the Sept. 11 attacks by leadership changes and morale problems.

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01...d-cia-director/

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

Another Clintonite

Shoot me now!

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Panetta sounds like a type of bread

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

The Italian surname Panetta is derived from the Italian word "pane," which means "bread" and is derived from the Latin "panis," with the root of the meaning being derived from the verb "to feed or nourish." Panetta was a common occupational name for a baker, or someone who sold bread.

http://www.houseofnames.com/xq/asp.fc/qx/p...amily-crest.htm

[EstebanTrabajos 7]

5-inch Meatball sandwich with pepper jack cheese and everything but onions and olives in Panetta bread please

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Leo Panetta on the use of torture...

According to the latest polls, two-thirds of the American public believes that torturing suspected terrorists to gain important information is justified in some circumstances. How did we transform from champions of human dignity and individual rights into a nation of armchair torturers? One word: fear.

Fear is blinding, hateful, and vengeful. It makes the end justify the means. And why not? If torture can stop the next terrorist attack, the next suicide bomber, then what's wrong with a little waterboarding or electric shock?

The simple answer is the rule of law. Our Constitution defines the rules that guide our nation. It was drafted by those who looked around the world of the eighteenth century and saw persecution, torture, and other crimes against humanity and believed that America could be better than that. This new nation would recognize that every individual has an inherent right to personal dignity, to justice, to freedom from cruel and unusual punishment.

We have preached these values to the world. We have made clear that there are certain lines Americans will not cross because we respect the dignity of every human being. That pledge was written into the oath of office given to every president, "to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution." It's what is supposed to make our leaders different from every tyrant, dictator, or despot. We are sworn to govern by the rule of law, not by brute force.

We cannot simply suspend these beliefs in the name of national security. Those who support torture may believe that we can abuse captives in certain select circumstances and still be true to our values. But that is a false compromise. We either believe in the dignity of the individual, the rule of law, and the prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment, or we don't. There is no middle ground.

We cannot and we must not use torture under any circumstances. We are better than that.

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/...01.panetta.html

[mox 298]

I'm not sure how I feel about this nomination. On the one hand, he simply cannot do a worse job. (having said that, we didn't elect Obama to just do a better job, which is a pretty low bar anyway) On the other hand, as AJ said, he's yet another Clintonite. I was willing to overlook the initial onslaught of Clintonites because it's crazy to think you can run the Federal government without at least SOME insiders. But I have to think there are some more progressive Dems out there who would better, more qualified picks. Wesley Clark comes to mind. I don't think he's a bad pick, but I think for such a critical position, Obama could have done better.

[mawilson 2,133]

Panetta sounds like a type of bread

And Pancetta is a type of meat.

[nowhereman 1]

I'm not sure how I feel about this nomination. On the one hand, he simply cannot do a worse job. (having said that, we didn't elect Obama to just do a better job, which is a pretty low bar anyway) On the other hand, as AJ said, he's yet another Clintonite. I was willing to overlook the initial onslaught of Clintonites because it's crazy to think you can run the Federal government without at least SOME insiders. But I have to think there are some more progressive Dems out there who would better, more qualified picks. Wesley Clark comes to mind. I don't think he's a bad pick, but I think for such a critical position, Obama could have done better.

Yea I'm unsure as well... I know little about the guy. Wesley Clark would probably be the next SecDef if he didn't make a dumb remark about McCain's military record, so I don't see him getting nominated for anything. I did read that Panetta has no intel experience, which if true is a mark against him.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

Another retarded pick by Obama.

[mox 298]

Another retarded pick by Obama.

Definitely the most retarded pick since he chose

for Attorney General.

[Amby 490]

Panetta sounds like a type of bread

And Pancetta is a type of meat.

I read the title as pancetta and thought #######?

[one...two...tree 2,762]

WASHINGTON – President-elect Barack Obama's decision to fill the nation's top intelligence jobs with two men short on direct experience in intelligence gathering surprised the spy community and signaled the Democrat's intention for a clean break from Bush administration policies.

Former Clinton White House Chief of Staff Leon Panetta, an eight-term congressional veteran and administrative expert, is being tapped to head the CIA. Retired Adm. Dennis Blair is Obama's choice to be director of national intelligence, a selection expected for weeks, according to two Democrats who spoke on condition of anonymity because Obama has not officially announced the choices.

The Obama transition team's long delay in selecting CIA and national intelligence directors is a reflection of the complicated demands of the jobs and Obama's own policies and priorities.

Obama is sending an unequivocal message that controversial administration policies approving harsh interrogations, waterboarding and extraordinary renditions — the secret transfer of prisoners to other governments with a history of torture — and warrantless wiretapping are over, said several officials.

The search for Obama's new CIA chief had been stalled since November, when John Brennan, Obama's transition intelligence adviser, abruptly withdrew his name from consideration. Brennan said his potential nomination had sparked outrage among civil rights and human rights groups, who argued that he had not been outspoken enough in his condemnation of President George W. Bush's policies.

And despite an internal list of former and current CIA officials who had impressive administrative credentials, all either worked in intelligence during the Bush administration's development of controversial policies on interrogation and torture or earlier, during the months leading up to the Sept. 11 terror attacks.

Neither Panetta nor Blair are tainted by associations with Bush administration policies, in large part because they both come from outside the intelligence world. Blair was posted at the CIA for about a year.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/obama_spy_agencies

[mawilson 2,133]

Panetta sounds like a type of bread

And Pancetta is a type of meat.

I read the title as pancetta and thought #######?

You thought ####### and I thought "mm...tasty!"

[Amby 490]

Panetta sounds like a type of bread

And Pancetta is a type of meat.

I read the title as pancetta and thought #######?

You thought ####### and I thought "mm...tasty!"

Me too buuuuuuuuuut...I didn't want to rely on an Italian meat to be the CIA director so I read it again

Edited January 6, 2009 by Amby