Obama’s new spy chiefs to break with Bush years
Barack Obama has vowed to observe Geneva Conventions bans on torture
and outlawed the tweaking of intelligence data for political gain,
naming new US spy chiefs in a clean break from the Bush years.
Completing the top ranks of his national security team, the
president-elect named retired admiral Dennis Blair as director of
national intelligence and veteran Washington player Leon Panetta to head
the Central Intelligence Agency.
“We know that to be truly secure, we must adhere to our values as
vigilantly as we protect our safety with no exceptions,” Obama said
Friday, 12 days before he is sworn in as president.
The president-elect also appointed veteran intelligence operative
John Brennan as his chief counter terrorism adviser inside the White
House.
Brennan had been a candidate for another top intelligence job but
faced criticism from human rights groups over his stand on some “war on
terror” tactics like forced renditions and tough interrogation
practices.
Obama said the national security crises and controversies during
President George W. Bush’s administration had delivered “tough lessons”
in a clear reference to Iraq and the debate about how to treat “war on
terror” suspects.
“We have learned that to make pragmatic policy choices, we must
insist on assessments grounded solely in the facts, and not seek
information to suit any ideological agenda,” Obama said at a press
conference.
Critics accused the Bush administration of cherry picking
intelligence about Saddam Hussein’s alleged weapons of mass destruction
programs to make the case for war in Iraq.
The president-elect declared that the United States would also
observe the Geneva Conventions on the treatment of terror suspects,
after the Supreme Court effectively forced the Bush administration to do
so.
“I was clear throughout this campaign and have been clear throughout
this transition that under my administration, the United States does not
torture.
“We will abide by the Geneva Conventions (and) we will uphold our
highest values and ideals.”
Blair will have to juggle a number of ticking national security time
bombs including the Iranian nuclear showdown, North Korea’s weapons
programs and the anti-terror operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
He inherits an intelligence community of 16 fractious agencies still
in the throes of reform following monumental failings during Bush’s
first term and ahead of the September 11 attacks in 2001.(AFP)
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