Goss Out - Hayden In?

The surprise resignation of Porter Goss of the CIA is being pinned on one of Gloss' top appointments (Kyle Foggo) being involved in the Cunningham sex scandal (Nation 5/05/06). While this may be a stimulus (or excuse) for moving on, Goss and Negroponte have not played well together, and there has been conflict over the division of power between Homeland Security (Negroponte as Director of National Intelligence) and Goss (as head of the CIA). Don't you hate it when the in crowd doesn't play well together?

Both Negroponte and Goss are long time insiders who have done the dirty deeds and kept quiet about it. Both have fulfilled their roles of loading up their respective areas with cronies and focusing on supporting the Bush administration and its policies. This focus was clear in Goss' memo to CIA employees:

"Porter J. Goss, the newly appointed Director of Central Intelligence, wrote an internal memorandum to all employees of his agency telling them, "[Our job is to] support the administration and its policies in our work. As agency employees, we do not identify with, support, or champion opposition to the administration or its policies."" Johnson, Mother Jones, 11/24/04

Now we have General Michael V. Hayden to be the likely next CIA head. Hayden has credentials for the job - particularly from a Bush Administration perspective. It was Hayden who oversaw (oversees?) the NSA illegal surveillance activities. Just as Gonzales continues to make the case for warrantless surveillance and torture as head of DoJ, Hayden has supported the right to spy on whoever the President orders.

Hayden is a General in the U.S. Airforce - a promotion he received on April 22, 2005 the day after he was confirmed as Deputy Director of National Intelligence (Wikipedia). In fact, he has been in the military serving in a variety of interesting posts having also served as the head of the NSA and the Air Intelligence Agency, and filled a post at the Nation Security Council.

One has to wonder if the hand of Rumsfeld is assisting Hayden's high placement at the NSA and the Office of the Director of National Security as part of the compromise between Negroponte (civilian) and Rumsfeld (defense) for control of national security. It has been clear that there is an ongoing power struggle by Rumsfeld to expand the reach of the military into domestic affairs - and he has particular interest in control of "intelligence" at all levels. While the placement of Hayden at NSA and ODNI should raise some questions, placing an active Airforce General in charge of the Central Intelligence Agency should ring alarm bells. Afterall, the CIA is a civilian agency is it not? (Though there were those reports of CIA in charge of torture at a variety of military prisons including Abu Ghraib). Should General Hayden be required to resign his commission to be head of CIA, and would it make any difference? (And who has been paying him? The Airforce or the various government agencies, or both?)

Perhaps, what we are seeing is the real cost of Negroponte at Homeland Security and ODNI - the military (aka Rumsfeld) really is in charge. No wonder he won't step down - or be kicked out. To whom would Bush give such power? Perhaps General Boykin? You remember General Boykin, he is the evangelical General who campaigned for Bush saying that Bush had been elected by God. He was also "pivotal" in reforming Abu Ghraib. Certainly, he is a believer - in Bush, and God's blessing of Bush and all he does. Perhaps he will just replace Hayden at ODNI and the NSA and the NSC. There are still two and a half years (at least) to "transform" to world to meet the Bush "vision."