Free Republic

Valerie Plame should be the next Director of Central Intelligence, not Gen. Mike Hayden. Now that the CIA's Praetorian Guard has -- with the connivance of National Intelligence Director John Negroponte -- rid itself of Porter Goss, the CIA is confidently preparing to march back into the intelligence dark ages that preceded 9/11. Gen. Hayden -- former head of the National Intelligence Agency and most famous for his strong defense of the NSA terrorist surveillance program -- is slated to be nominated for the DCI post today. Hayden, now Negroponte's deputy and choice for DCI, will face tough questioning in...

Donald Trump's attacks on broadcaster CNN are an "an outrageous assault" on freedom of speech, according to former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) director Michael Hayden. “If this is who we are or who we are becoming, I have wasted 40 years of my life,” the former spy chief, who now works as a national security analyst for the broadcaster, said in a Twitter post. General Hayden, who is also a former director of the National Surveillance Agency (NSA), added: "Until now it was not possible for me to conceive of an American President capable of such an outrageous assault on...

Discussion of a classified government wiretap program is expected to dominate Thursday's confirmation hearing for Gen. Michael Hayden, tapped by the White House to be the next CIA chief. Ahead of the hearing, details of the National Security Agency's wiretap program were given for the first time to the intelligence committees of both the House and Senate on Wednesday. Previously only a handful of senior senators and congressmen were told about the domestic spying operation authorized by the president, which is run outside the court system. The wiretapping will be a "central" topic of discussions on whether to approve Hayden...