FBI stagnant under freeze in promotions

[CShine]

WASHINGTON - At a time when the FBI insists it has transformed itself into an agile force able to blunt the threat of terrorism, the agency is stuck in a bureaucratic quagmire that has left dozens of key posts vacant and more than a hundred agents with little authority in senior supervisory positions. At stake, agents and bureau managers say, is the FBI's ability to fight the war on terrorism without becoming sidelined by the kind of bureaucratic problems that have dogged the agency for a decade.

In this case, the FBI has not promoted any midlevel manager - from terrorism unit chiefs to assistant special agents in charge, the second-highest field office post - since October, when Director Robert S. Mueller III froze all promotions.

"The situation is absolutely terrible," said I.C. Smith, a retired 25-year FBI veteran who was familiar with the promotion problem when it began in the 1990s. "Anytime you have people in an acting capacity, you basically have undermined authority.

"You have people who aren't willing to make the hard decisions," said Smith, who was special agent in charge of the Arkansas field office. "People who are afraid to make mistakes or they will be replaced, and subordinates who don't look at them as real unit chiefs."

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/custom/attack/bal-te.fbi11jun11,0,216330.story?coll=bal-home-headlines

[madrchsod]

1. doesn`t that make you all warm and fuzzy

knowing that the cia and fbi are it such disarray that their ability to track down the bad guys is seriously in trouble

[Desperadoe]

2. Here's how this works

in the Federal Bureaucracy.

When you freeze promotions the only method to fill higher level vacancies is through temporary higher level assignments. Unlike a permanent promotion, these temporary assignments can be terminated at will.

IOW, if you are on a temporary higher level assignment and you aren't kow-towing to the gods at the top, you're gone and another lackey takes your place.

It is far more difficult to remove a permanently promoted manager from his position if he or she demonstrates too much character and ability and doesn't worship at the Ashcroft/Mueller alter.

The perfect setup for failure.

[Tellurian]

3. But good news for us...

Any action that undermines the loyalty of the fbi, nis, cia, aia, asa
dia, dha, oss and ss to benefit the interests of the people, is a good thing!

[freethought]

4. Colleen Rowley said it!

The FBI is overflowing with careerists. Those more concerned with their own image over duty to public.

I believe that Sibel Edmonds has said much of the same.