Isn't he the one that authored legislation (around 1996) to preclude the CIA from hiring informants with a shady past?
The Central Intelligence Agency's ability to gather intelligence in the Middle East has been injured by reforms triggered in 1995 by then-Rep. Robert Torricelli (D-N.J.), members of the House Intelligence Committee said last week.
In the wake of disclosures by Torricelli that a Guatemalan colonel linked to the murder of an American was on the CIA payroll, the agency fired one-third of its informants - roughly 1,000 "assets" - and instituted new rules on the recruitment of sources.
Some of the assets were fired because of poor production, but others were fired for criminal activity that could have proved embarrassing to the United States if uncovered.
"The focus of Congress at the time was on Mr. Torricelli's actions and whether he had violated ethics rules, not on the CIA," said Rep. Larry Combest (R-Texas), who chaired the Intelligence Committee at the time.
Nonetheless, voters and editorial boards across the country were outraged, and President Clinton joined the fray, threatening to fire "on the spot" any CIA agent who had failed to pass along information about the colonel, Julio Roberto Alpirez.
"Sen. Torricelli feels it is imperative in a democracy for there to be some accountability within the intelligence community," spokeswoman Debra DeShong said. "The directive merely made certain that, if the United States were to engage in a relationship with someone who has committed human rights abuses, the decision would be made by a senior official."
After conducting a review of his agency's operations, Director of Central Intelligence John Deutch fired informants - including Middle Easterners - who had dirty hands and directed his field operatives to clear questionable recruits with Washington.