There’s a fuss brewing in Washington
about President Bush reportedly picking a military man to head the CIA.
This is considered a dire threat to the freedom of the country for a
military man to head this “civilian” agency. Has anyone ever heard of
Stansfield Turner? He was Jimmy Carter’s pick to head the CIA in 1977.
And what was his job before taking over the CIA? He was a U.S. Navy
admiral who, until 1977, was commander in chief of U.S. Forces in Southern Europe.
He was appointed by Carter on Feb. 8 of that year, confirmed on Feb. 24
and sworn in on March 9. From my memory of that period, I have no
recollection of a military-civilian debate at all. I guess it’s the
times we live in.
UPDATE:
I was wondering what the lag time was between Turner’s military career
and his CIA posting. It couldn’t have been long, I surmised, since his
bio showed him still in his NATO post in 1977 and his CIA appointment
was in early February of that year. This answers that question.
When he was summoned from Europe by Carter, Turner expected a high
military appointment but was instead asked to take over the CIA ?
directly from his military job. Which is what Bush is reportedly going
to ask Air Force Gen. Michael Hayden to do.
UPDATE 2: I have had several emails as a result of a column I wrote on this same subject pointing out that the military and the CIA are hardly strangers. As William Katz wrote in his email:
In fact, the first director of the CIA was Rear Admiral Roscoe
Hillenkoetter. He was followed by Walter Bedell Smith, general, US
Army. And Vice Admiral William Raborn, known for his work in developing
the Polaris missile system, was CIA director from 1965 to 1966.So there is a long tradition of military men heading the CIA.
