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Obama to tap retired admiral as intelligence czar: US media
AFP
Dec. 20, 2008
WASHINGTON (AFP) — President-elect Barack Obama has tapped retired Navy admiral Dennis Blair as his intelligence czar, US media reported Saturday.
Unnamed government officials familiar with the selection process confirmed the choice to the Los Angeles Times, but the daily added that Obama had yet to conclude his search for a new Central Intelligence Agency chief.
Top intelligence jobs are the most prominent of the portfolios that Obama has yet to fill, following a flurry of announcements of appointments that rounded out the president-elect’s cabinet.
If confirmed as Director of National Intelligence (DNI), Blair would face ticking international time bombs inherited from the administration of President George W. Bush, including two wars, secret CIA prisons overseas and domestic wiretapping.
The top intelligence adviser to the president and the National Security Council, he would be tasked with managing intelligence activities and overseeing 16 often fractious agencies.
Obama’s team has faced hurdles in finalizing his intelligence picks, and the choice of Blair — a career military man — might fuel tensions between civilian and military intelligence officials, The Wall Street Journal reported.
“It’s controversial from those within the intelligence community,” a former top intelligence official told the Journal regarding the Blair pick.
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