John McLaughlin, who took temporary command of the CIA for three months this year during a wave of criticism of the spy agency, is retiring amid internal conflicts.I'm not overly surprised by this resignation. "Merlin" and his agency had to face some serious crticism when the 9/11 and Iraq re-war intelligence reports came out.
In a statement Friday, McLaughlin, the CIA's deputy director and 32-year agency veteran, called his departure a "purely personal decision" and said it was time to move on to other endeavors.
But former intelligence officials in touch with current agency personnel say there has been turmoil in recent weeks as new CIA Director Porter Goss tried to make changes and get settled in.
Goss, a Florida Republican who formerly chaired the House Intelligence Committee, brought four of his congressional aides with him to the CIA's 7th floor executive offices shortly after he took over in September.
But tension began before he arrived.
For the record, I didn't support Goss for this position although I agree with him that CIA is in turmoil and some feathers needed to be ruffled.
Islamofascism Delenda Est!
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