Comments on: President-elect Obama picks Leon Panetta to head the CIA

By: Carl

Carl — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 03:40:58 +0000

Hokey smokes, Bullwinkle! If Panetta…poinsetta…pancetta…whatever…can get a cabinet job of which he has no experience, where do I send my resumÃ© to get one of those jobs?!?

By: Neo

Neo — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 01:26:43 +0000

What's the big deal. Leon gradgiated the 5th grade and can probably cypher. That's all it takes to be a double naught spy. Besides, Sanjay Gupta out scores him for "brain surgeon"

By: Great White Rat

Great White Rat — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 01:12:25 +0000

Steve, they have managed not to blow up their own HQ in Langley or turn it into an AQ command center. Considering everything else they’ve gotten wrong, that has to be counted a success.

By: Steve Skubinna

Steve Skubinna — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 00:16:45 +0000

It will be a re-run of the 1970’s disaster when the Congressional Dems under Frank Church nearly ruined the CIA.

What do you mean, “nearly,” GWR? Are you aware of some CIA success story since the ’70s that has eluded the rest of us? I think the CIA is only effective in Tom Clancy novels.

By: Marshall Art

Marshall Art — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 21:54:49 +0000

I wish I had a link for this, but one conservative pundit suggested the Panetta pick was made to reduce the conflict between the CIA and the admin that Bush was made to endure. They weren’t exactly chummy. In fact, the Hillary pick solves the same problem from a competitor for the throne.

By: Is Panetta a good fit at CIA? | Radio Vice Online

Is Panetta a good fit at CIA? | Radio Vice Online — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 18:25:36 +0000

[...] Toldja is convinced that it’s a political pay off, pure and simple. So lemme see here: We’ve got an [...]

By: yo

yo — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 17:45:54 +0000

Hey! Let’s not forget, folks, what we’ve had to listen to from the left over the appointment of “nice job Brownie” by gwbush. So, after the media beating they’ve given us since katrina over that, now they are going to do the exact same thing, put politics above experience, and not only won’t the press hammer obama over it, they try to help him make his case.
Gonna be a very long four years, folks.

By: Great White Rat

Great White Rat — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 14:48:51 +0000

Obama’s focus will be on domestic matters, not national security or foreign policy. So it’s not surprising that his selections for those positions are light on experience.

The real problem will come if he folds under the pressure from the far left and allows a de facto dismantling of the intelligence and security apparatus. It will be a re-run of the 1970’s disaster when the Congressional Dems under Frank Church nearly ruined the CIA. Except the threat may be more dangerous, since it now comes not from Soviet nukes – the Soviets, however evil, were at least sane – but from unhinged islamofascists.

By: Lorica

Lorica — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 14:26:08 +0000

It seems to me that Panetta was one of the guys that knew that the Clinton Admin. was doing Renditions. It was very much a Clinton policy to send these guys to Egypt to be tortured, and I know as Bill’s CoS Panetta would have known that was what was going on. So basically what the AP is saying is, that they are done reporting on such nasty things.

Now back to our regularly scheduled programing of the Teletubbies visit Barack the Magic Negro. – Lorica

By: Severian

Severian — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 12:00:12 +0000

I’ve been browsing on some food blogs, so when I saw that, for a minute I thought it said, “pancetta.”

Well, he is a real ham though.

I don’t know why this surprises anyone, this is indeed the “American Idol” election and administration, amateurs trying to be professionals. Actually it’s more like “The Gong Show” but unfortunately our enemies have very large gongs they can ring.

By: SpideyTerry

SpideyTerry — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 06:15:50 +0000

Well, the upshot is that Panetta still has more experience than Obama.

Man, 2012 can’t come fast enough.

By: Trish

Trish — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 02:33:31 +0000

I’ve been browsing on some food blogs, so when I saw that, for a minute I thought it said, “pancetta.”

Ah, would that it had!

By: NC Cop

NC Cop — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 01:04:53 +0000

Obama is also sending an unequivocal message that experience and qualifications are completely irrelevant in his administration. He is also sending a message that he is in such a hurry to placate the lunatic left that he will risk the lives of Americans to do it.

If this is a nightmare, somebody please wake me up.

By: Leslie

Leslie — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 00:34:15 +0000

Ah. Hah. Clintonista Panetta gets job because that was one of the terms of the agreement between Obama and Hillary when she agreed to become Secretary of State.

Now look at this quote ST has thankfully brought to our attention:

Obama is sending an unequivocal message that controversial administration policies approving harsh interrogations, waterboarding and extraordinary renditions — the secret transfer of prisoners to other governments with a history of torture — and warrantless wiretapping are over, said several officials.

Emphasis mine.

Well I’ve no problem with the president-elect sending unequivocal messages (although if my hunch that this is part of a deal is correct it’s not so unequivocal), but are we supposed to believe that these “several officials” stood up as one and, like an old-time doo-wop group sang out: “Doo wah, doo wah, the days of torture and warrantless wiretapping are over over over hummmmmmm.”

Oh wait! Never mind. The AP didn’t put quotemarks around the whole thing. So we don’t know what the officials said, let alone who they are. Now isn’t that helpful?