Posted on 01/03/2010 11:22:18 AM PST by opentalk
President Obama's top counterterrorism adviser, John O. Brennan, will lead the White House review of intelligence community information practices and aviation security, even though he was CEO of the private company the government used to help manage a key terrorism database before he joined the administration.
In response to questions about Brennan's potential conflict of interest, White House ethics counsel Norm Eisen has issued a waiver for Brennan, official said.
Before he served as CEO of The Analysis Corporation, or TAC, Brennan was the interim director of the first incarnation of the National Counterterrorism Center. In that position, he oversaw the government's first post 9-11 attempts at community-wide data sharing. Before joining the administration, Brennan spent 35 years in the intelligence community, mostly at the CIA, and served in senior management.
Denis McDonough, chief of staff at the National Security Council, said that the ethics rules "recognize that when the public interest outweighs other issues, an official should be authorized to proceed with an assignment, particularly in the national security arena. Our counsel have determined that to be the case here and have authorized John to proceed-with the understanding that others will review specific issues relating to TAC should any arise."
(Excerpt) Read more at politics.theatlantic.com ...
This is a bigger conflict-of-interest than it might seem at first glance. Arguably, the Underpants Bomber’s near-downing of a packed airliner on Christmas Day followed an abysmal failure to connect-the-dots on the part of our intel apparatus. It was, at its root, a data-sharing screw-up. This guy was CEO of a company which may have been part of the problem. It’s very much like putting Jamie Gorelick on the 9/11 inquiry panel.
This administration does a lot of “waivering” on ethics.
The list, ping
The first administrative action of any new Obama cabinet prospect is an ethics waiver.
BTW, Brennan was embarrassing on Fox News this morning
It’s the rule except when it isn’t.
Despite the huge arse conflict of interest here?
This lametard jack squat of an administration is so corrupt, the Clinton’s are speechless in admiration.
Given the sheer amount of ethics waivers they have utilized so far, its a wonder that they even know what “ethics” is/are.........
He was beyond embarrasing. Here we have a guy who ran the company that put anti-terrorist databases together, and who tacictly admitted he had no clue how intel analysis worked by saying there was no single smoking gun. Of course there wasn't, you moron - that's what your stinkin' database is supposed to be for - to help stitch the multiple pieces of intel together.
Houston, I think we've found the problem...
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