The president-elect's presser today was mostly consumed with matters of the economy but one reporter got in a question about Obama's apparent pick of Leon Panetta to be head of the CIA -- particularly his alleged lack of experience in intelligence matters. While stressing that nothing's official, Obama praised Panetta's leadership abilities. He said that as Bill Clinton's Chief of Staff, Panetta spent plenty of time evaluating intelligence and dealing with international issues. Obama said no matter who he picks, it will signal a sea change in the way the president and his intelligence team interacts.
When we make the announcement, I think what people will see is that we are putting together a top-notch intelligence team that is not only going to ensure that I get the best possible intelligence--unvarnished--that the intelligence community is no longer geared towards telling the president what they think the president wants to hear, but instead are going to be delivering the information the president needs to make critical decisions to keep the American people safe.
Many qualified people to head the CIA were passed over due to their intelligence experience during the "tainted" Bush Administration.
The Obama solution is a Clinton-era bureaucrat, who happened to spend what little inteligence community experience he does have WATCHING and ignoring al-Qaida attack the US FIVE times during the 1990's.
Panetta's meager intelligence experience leads one to believe Obama picked him to keep the CIA in line and prevent any further Valerie Plame Presidential take down coups.
The left EXPECTS Obama to release terrorists from Gitmo, most of whom will likely seek seek to kill Americans upon their release. It will be interesting to see how much media coverage these terrorists get when they kill Americans and we have to hunt down the same people Obama let go.
The Patriot act and FISA are tools that have kept us safe that many on the left EXPECT Obama to do away with. Obama's choice of Panetta leds one to believe that is what he will do.
For all of Bush's failings he has kept us safe for nearly eight years now. Obama on the other hand seems to be setting the table for terrorists to strike again, as they have in Gaza.
With all the political winds in Obama's favor, unpopular President, two term incumbent, unpopular war, sky high gas prices, falling stock market, faltering economy and financial meltdown Obama won by just 52%-48%.
Thousands more DEAD Americans here at home will no doubt change MILLIONS of votes in 2012. Based on what is going on in the middle east today it may be hard to believe now but we MAY yearn for the good old days when George Bush was President and we were SAFE. We shall see, I hope I'm wrong.
This may be the first time I have EVER agreed with Diane Fienstien. Even a Hope and Change no preconditions lets hold hands and sing Kumbaya pinhead liberal from CA can see the writing on the wall. Fienstien knows if we are attacked again, and thousands die, after she Pelosi, Reid, Murtha and others denounced the very Bush policies that have ultimately kept us safe for eight years, Bush will be forgiven and DEMOCRATS will spend a GENERATION trying to live it down.
Obama will walk a fine line between keeping us safe and the left happy, I hope he can pull it off. Panetta is NOT a promising start.
Respectfully, Pete
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Frank Hummel
9:36PM Jan 6th 2009
It is amazing to me that there really do seem to be people within this ostensibly "superior" society who are able to persuade themselves that the "safety" of this country has somehow been defended by the sadists within "our" "intelligence" community who have managed to FOIST burden of complicity in MURDER and TORTURE off on the American People. Now they try to cover their posteriors by "scaring" people to the effect that THEY are the people with "experience in intelligence", and there should not be any real, meaningful cleaning out of their little rat's nest. I suppose it would be too much to hope that the new administration will actually muster the BALLS to SERIOUSLY flush terrribly many of these birds out from under their "cover". But I sure hope at at least a FEW of the MOST EGREGIOUS among them will actually be shot down!
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Pete
9:55PM Jan 6th 2009
Frank Hummel
Lincoln suspended Habias Corpus, During WWII FDR interned hundreds of thousands of Japanese Americans for no other reason than their ancestry.
The CIA has waterboarded THREE terrorists, THREE.
So I repeat:
"Feinstien knows if we are attacked again, and thousands die, after she Pelosi, Reid, Murtha and others denounced the very policies that have kept us safe for eight years, Bush will be forgiven and DEMOCRATS will spend a generation trying to live it down."
Its time to put up or shut up Frank and with Democrats in the White House and BOTH Houses there will be NO one else to blame when thousands die. So if thousands are to die you Democrats 'flush those birds from cover'. Those 'birds' would just happen to be the same 'birds' who have kept us safe for eight years now. Once all those 'birds' are flushed and Democrats are blowing kisses at the terrorists there will be no one for our tingling legs media to blame but those responsible if thousands die in another terrorist attack Joe "Mark my words" Biden said is coming.
Respectfully, Pete
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catquick
1:25AM Jan 7th 2009
Pete... don't forget the "voyage of the damned" that FDR foisted upon escaping Jews to the shores of America. He sent them back, a death sentence for all aboard in I belive 1940. History tries to bury this part of the great mans legacy, but the history channel ran a special program on it about a year ago.
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Pete
9:03AM Jan 7th 2009
The historical record shows plainly, although history is not something the general public and most voters are familar with, many presidents have taken much more extreme measures of "trampling the Constitution" to protect Americans during a time of war or crisis.
Obama is in the position of having to continue to keep America safe. Now that Democrats are in the drivers seat and have to put up or shut up they MAY just have to maintain the very policies that have WORKED to keep us safe. The very policies Obama and many other Democrats railed against when it was politically expedient to do so may suddenly be not so bad now, like Obama's vote FOR FISA.
Now Democrats are in the drivers seat and failure is NOT an option. It will be interesting to see just how much of the Bush policies Democrats will continue while Panetta provides political "cover" for the same Bush 'birds' to keep on doing what they have been doing.
Failure is not an option or Democrats will spend a generation trying to live it down.
Respectfully, Pete
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AL
1:25AM Jan 8th 2009
Uncovered Photos of Obama's Secret Seventies Disco Funk Past