CIA Wins Epic Turf Battle With Intelligence Czar

The CIA has decisively won a long-running turf fight with the director of national intelligence, the CIA’s ostensible boss, over who will be the top U.S. intelligence representatives in foreign countries, NEWSWEEK has learned. According to a White House ruling, in every country where U.S. intelligence agencies operate, the CIA’s station chief will continue to be the most senior U.S. intelligence officer, intelligence officials told NEWSWEEK.

The ruling represents a big victory for CIA Director Leon Panetta and a setback for the national-intelligence czar, retired Navy Adm. Dennis Blair. Blair had argued in high-level meetings for months that as the nation’s intelligence overlord, he should have the power, in special circumstances, to name an officer from an agency other than the CIA as his “DNI representative” in countries where U.S. intelligence officers are stationed. That would theoretically make such a person superior to the local CIA chief. The issue was presented for resolution several weeks ago to Vice President Joe Biden.

Source/Full Story: Declassified Blog

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