General Michael V. Hayden to be Director of the Central Intelligence Agency

GENERAL MICHAEL V. HAYDEN TO BE DIRECTOR OF THE CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY

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Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I would like to say a few words about the nomination of General Michael V. Hayden to be Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. I regret that I was not able to vote to confirm his nomination at this time, and I would like to take a few minutes to explain my vote.

As my colleagues may know, I voted to confirm General Hayden when he was nominated to be the Deputy Director of National Intelligence, DNI. I stand by that vote for two reasons. First, General Hayden is obviously qualified on paper to fill the position. Second, he was serving as Deputy to the current DNI, John Negroponte. So there was a clear line of authority.

But today when the Senate voted on his nomination to be Director of the CIA, these two circumstances were significantly different. First, issues like the potentially illegal wiretapping of American citizens' phone lines by the National Security Agency--a program which General Hayden reportedly designed and ran--have come to light. And second, he will no longer be serving as a deputy but as head of one of our Nation's premier intelligence agencies--yet he is not resigning his commission as a uniformed officer. That raises the question of whether and to what degree he will be independent from decisions made at the Pentagon.

Some of my colleagues have insisted that Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld will no longer be in the chain of command overseeing General Hayden in his position at the CIA. Certainly, there is precedent for uniformed officers serving as head of the CIA. However, when we look at this precedent we also have to realize that circumstances have changed. A not insignificant part of the reason that we invaded Iraq is because our Nation's intelligence was politicized, and because intelligence activities were manipulated to justify a predetermined conclusion--that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction.

Much of this intelligence manipulation was performed by intelligence bureaus within the Pentagon, under the supervision of Secretary Rumsfeld, who has been steadily expanding the Pentagon's role in U.S. intelligence activities. It would seem to this Senator that given Secretary Rumsfeld's track record, concentrating intelligence in his hands would be unwise to say the least.

The truth is that we don't really know how much independence General Hayden will show with respect to the Secretary of Defense. After all, he is a military officer, with an active commission. And the record is mixed with respect to predicting how the cards will fall. On one hand, there are reports that he stood up to Secretary Rumsfeld and other political appointees in the President's Cabinet on certain occasions. On the other hand, he reportedly designed and strongly supported a program to wiretap the homes of American citizens, whose legality is in question.

If he was just following orders, these circumstances raise serious questions about his ability to exercise independence as Director of the CIA. If, as is widely believed, he was the driving force behind the NSA's wiretapping program, then I question his ability to balance the important need to defend our Nation from threats with the equally important need to protect constitutional rights of all Americans.

I frankly think it is a shame that Congress didn't take a few more days, or even a couple of weeks, to more deeply probe these fundamental issues of security and liberty. Indeed, if this body had taken sufficient steps to get answers about the NSA's wiretapping program, and if General Hayden had considered leaving his role as an active military officer during his tenure as CIA Director, then it is possible that the concerns I mentioned might have been alleviated.

I also regret the fact, however, that President Bush didn't pick somebody who was equally qualified but not tied in to controversial programs such as collecting telephone information and listening in to conversations between American citizens. Because in this time of difficulty for the CIA, we don't just need someone who is qualified, we also need someone who is credible. While the extent of General Hayden's involvement in these activities is as yet unclear, I am concerned that his role could potentially undermine his ability to carry out his duties as head of the CIA.

Mr. President, despite some opposition, General Hayden was confirmed earlier this morning by the Senate. At this juncture, I can only hope that he proves my concerns to be unfounded. I wish him only the best in pursuing a goal that I know we all share--the safety and well-being of American citizens in this time of war.

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