Per Rocky ... there's always this little memory:
Although Goss sailed through the confirmation vote, he could have a brief tenure if John Kerry is elected. Kerry would of course be entitled to choose a new DCI or NID. Kerry has so far avoided commenting on the Goss nomination.
John Edwards, the Democrats' nominee for Vice President, did not attend the hearings or votes, even though he's a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence that vetted Goss. Of the sixteen members of the committee, only four asked difficult and probing questions: Carl Levin (D-MI), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), and Richard Durbin (D-IL). They were outvoted by twelve to four.
Although unsuccessful in blocking the nomination, these four Senators did succeed in getting many important issues "on the record" -- although somewhat less successful in getting Goss to answer questions.
(snip)
It started when he was asked by Senator Rockefeller about his voting record in Congress. Goss replied "the record is the record." As the hearings continued, this phrase would be repeated whenever Goss was asked about controversial positions he's taken, or statements he'd made.
Senator Rockefeller was concerned with statements Goss had made to the press that John Kerry, and the Democrats in general, had voted for cutbacks in intelligence funding.
Rockefeller had a large graph comparing Republican versus Democrat votes for intelligence spending bills. Goss refused to comment on the chart or on any of Rockefeller's questions about his voting record.
In his concluding remarks, Rockefeller accused Goss of having no management experience, and said that no one who'd been in politics as long as he had should do the job. According to Rockefeller, CIA Directors were rarely politicians, with the exceptions of George Bush Sr. and William Casey (who'd worked for the Republican National Committee).
Goss was also quizzed on a bill he'd proposed on June 16th of this year, which would have given the CIA the authority to conduct operations within the United States, something the Agency has always been forbidden from doing. Under intense pressure from Senator Wyden, Goss declared that "The CIA should have no arrest powers in the United States of America."
Defending his bill, he claimed it was the 9/11 Commission which blurred the line between domestic and foreign intelligence collection, and that he did not actually support the idea, but only proposed it to stimulate debate on the topic.
Rockefeller later asked if he correctly understood the bill to give the President the power to direct covert CIA operations within the US by issuing secret findings. Goss acknowledged this to be correct, but seemed more concerned over setting standards to avoid potential liability for violating anyone's civil rights. He gave the impression that any violation of civil rights might be acceptable, as long as the end -- eliminating the threat -- justified it.
I LOVE PORTER GOSS!!!
