Why would they send a CIA guy rather than a State Dept guy?
The CIA has its fingers in everything.
“Why would they send a CIA guy rather than a State Dept guy?”
I worked with a couple of guys who had retired from State. Admittedly, they were probably low level, although they vetted reports and prepared paperwork for the Ambassadors they worked under in various embassies. They were flaming gays and had zero understanding about cultures, Islam, etc. They had a rose-tinted vision when talking about Communism, diversity and current events. (Diversity wasn’t a word when they were in, but the essence of it permeated their speech. All those naked little brown people lived such idyllic lives. These guys were doubtless hippies in suits.)
My point is the people at the bottom of a hierarchy are generally representative of what’s at the top. People all the way down the pyramid hire those they can identify with. Periodically, a new president puts in a very temporary director who mostly has no influence on what sort of idiots get hired. So as bad as the CIA is likely to be, the people in it probably have a better picture of whatever they’re dealing with.