Posted on 04/22/2009 8:34:22 AM PDT by La Lydia
At the Central Intelligence Agency, it's known as "slow rolling." That's what agency officers sometimes do on politically sensitive assignments. They go through the motions; they pass cables back and forth; they take other jobs out of the danger zone; they cover their backsides...in the words of one veteran officer, "hit the agency like a car bomb in the driveway." President Obama promised CIA officers that they won't be prosecuted for carrying out lawful orders, but the people on the firing line don't believe him. They think the memos have opened a new season of investigation and retribution. The lesson for younger officers is obvious: Stay away from a counterterrorism program that has become a career hazard.
Obama tried to reassure the CIA workforce during a visit to Langley on Monday. He said all the right things...But it had the look of a campaign event...Obama seems to think he can have it both ways -- authorizing an unprecedented disclosure of CIA operational methods and at the same time galvanizing a clandestine service...Put yourself in the shoes of the people who were asked to interrogate al-Qaeda prisoners in 2002. One former officer told me he declined the job..."We all knew the political wind would change eventually," he recalled....
One veteran counterterrorism operative says that agents in the field are already being more careful...They need legal advice. I'm told that in the case of an al-Qaeda suspect seized in Iraq several weeks ago, the CIA didn't even try to interrogate him. The agency handed him over to the U.S. military. Agency officials also worry about the effect on foreign intelligence services that share secrets with the United States...
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
The CIA consistently stuck Georrge Bush in the back. The only people who will get prosecuted will be Bush supporters. Cofer Black better watchout.
President Obama promised CIA officers that they won’t be prosecuted for carrying out lawful orders, but the people on the firing line don’t believe him.
I,too, believe PresBO lacks credibility.
Note they’ve already got the lib bloggers out there speculating that Cheney et al is hoping we’ll get another attack “for political purposes”, so if/when it happens they can deny their own treasonous acts were the root cause.
Despicable people.
Take arms against a sea of troubles and by opposing, end them. I have great difficulty believing that anyone would directly go up against the CIA.
The intelligence agencies have become too politicized. The CIA and the FBI are under too much scrutiny and now that 0bama is the President, they will get further legal review and have many of their effective methods of intelligence gathering watched over closely by know-nothing meddling Dim politicians.
This will only make us more vulnerable to attack by terrorists as problems that might have been identified easily before will be reviewed and reviewed by administrators and lawyers rather than the folks close to the action in the field. Same will happen to our military as it gets defunded and weapons systems are not updated all to support the egregiously wasteful porkulus spending.
americans have become so immune to double-speak.
“no prosecutions for following lawful orders”...
and if the new justice dept determines the orders were “unlawful”???
MUST read article.
Exactly. Anyone who thinks that Valerie Plame and Joe Wilson are going to be prosecuted by 0bama/Holder is smoking the cheap stuff.
The CIA is *not* on our side. The CIA is a rogue organization with its own agenda.
I urge all in the military and security at all levels to get it in writing for the next four years. Be vewy, vewy cahfuh. POTUS is a wascally wabbit, if EVER there was one. You might disagree with Bush and Chaney, but you didn't have to watch your back with them. They'd stand toe to toe with you and call you out. The rules of engagement have changed. These are dangerous times, folks.
Definitely will be SOP for CiA field personnel to CYA and stay low profile from now on just as their manager bureaucrats have done and will continue to do so.
All to the detriment of USA security and safety.
What’s with all the squeamishness of the obozo admin? If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. To protect American lives, information must be obtained in whatever means necessary. These terrorists think nothing of picking up a gun and shooting our soldiers. People in the obozo admin make me sick.
No more. The scum governing our country are a clear and present danger to our safety, security and economic well being. I can't speak of that bunch in a civil tone any more.
Citizen Tom Paine gets it. You have to think that the CIA has operations, and means, that even the Administration doesn't know about. That, and they're bureaucrats. They will do what they need to do to survive. Who in their right mind would cross these guys? At some point, ideology doesn't matter, and bureaucratic survival does.
0bama is making a terrible mistake here, and doesn't even realize it. I predict it WILL come back to haunt him, although no one can say in what way. Perhaps in intelligence that doesn't get to him that could have prevented an attack, stopping his bid for a second term cold. Perhaps his birth certificate is finally found and released. Who knows?
Great article, Starwise. Obama is making us more and more vulnerable each and every day. Our enemies are cheering.
President Obama promised CIA officers that they won't be prosecuted for carrying out lawful orders, but the people on the firing line don't believe him... Obama seems to think he can have it both ways -- authorizing an unprecedented disclosure of CIA operational methods and at the same time galvanizing a clandestine service...
Whoops, and THANKS Starwise.
As Cheney said, waterbiarding was effective in obtaining timely, preventative intelligence.And all the liberal left A$$ Hats at CIA who leaked info to the NY Slimes should be piloried.
As far as the CIA , itis a Schitzoid agency just like all of out=r agencies, full animals of all political spectrums. The CIA leadership under Bush made the mistake of NOT cleaning out the lefties. They should have been purged or posted to Monrovia permanantly.
What THIS is about, is to effectively destroy the CIAs ability to function, so that Obama can sebd his agents overseas to do dirty , Unamerican, treasonous things ( kick back schemes for the COngressional Black Caucus from African coutries for example , ( Jefferson was caught red handed.), and escape the CIA intel net. Mark my words.No one in the CIA will go anywhere near to collecting intel on Obama's executive agents overseas. Obama is putting the fear onto the CIA, especially on its patriotic officers.They will not be allowed to "leak" the way the lefty faction inn the CIA did with Bush.If they do, then the torture prosecutions will begin?
Eff Obama and all of his running dogs!Leak like a sieve CIA lads!!!!!!!
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