TNR Commends Kerry On Intelligence Reform

[DrFunkenstein]

INTELLIGENT CHOICE
by Spencer Ackerman

Candidate: John Kerry
Category: Domestic Policy
Grade: A

One of the best national security proposals contained within John Kerry's speech today at the Council on Foreign Relations is destined to be ignored. Coverage of the speech will surely focus on what Kerry has to say about Iraq or rebuilding U.S. alliances or how he sticks it to President Bush. That's fine as far as it goes, but Kerry's brief remarks on intelligence reform have a lot going for them. "We must end ... the bureaucratic rivalries that put institutional pride ahead of national safety," he said. "As President, I will address this danger immediately by asking Congress to pass legislation creating a Director of National Intelligence, with real control of all national intelligence personnel and budgets."

Not the sexiest offering, to be sure, but a long overdue one. As it stands now, the various agencies within the intelligence community are nominally overseen by the Director of Central Intelligence (DCI)--that is, the head of the CIA. But 85 percent of the intelligence community's budget is in the hands of the Pentagon and outside the direction of the DCI. So the person who's in charge of all of these different agencies only controls about 15 percent of their funding. And since that person is only directly in charge of one of these agencies, the CIA, the DCI tends to put the needs of Langley ahead of those of the community as a whole. This breeds balkanization within the community, leading to cases where, in 1998, the CIA declared a clandestine war on Osama bin Laden and the other intelligence services knew nothing about it. Such intelligence failures make policymakers contemptuous of the intelligence agencies, leading them to marginalize, second-guess, or even place political pressure on analysts--as with Iraq.

Creating a Director of National Intelligence will structure the sprawling intelligence community in a top-down function, the same way we organize every other aspect of the bureaucracy. It's not a panacea, but it will certainly introduce vastly more accountability into intelligence production than we have now. Since the war on terrorism can't be won without robust intelligence capabilities, intelligence reform is imperative. Kerry's recognition of this fact says a lot about his commitment to winning that war.

http://www.tnr.com/primary/index.mhtml?pid=1033

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[sistersofmercy]

1. As usual the experience and wisdom of an outstanding candidate

speaks volumes.

[DrFunkenstein]

2. Beyond The Poll Gazing, Kerry Is Simply The Best Man For The Job

I, for one, will vote on that basis, not following the herd.

[WillyBrandt]

3. For what it's worth, Dr.FS

I've got a good friend and rabid Democrats who reads DU obsessively (he doesn't post). We were talking about DU the other day, and the posters we liked--he singled you out for praise.

"Dr. Funkenstein is great: he stands up for Kerry!"

[DrFunkenstein]

5. Thanks For Sharing The Vote Of Confidence

Sometimes I feel like a real jerk for hammering Dean's electability (but I really believe it). I would much rather post stuff about why Kerry is great, but I can't say that ignoring Dean is very useful. I've been here for many months now, and it really wasn't until September that I started doing so. I have a huge library of bookmarks for pro-Kerry threads I started. I really do find him very, very impressive.

It would have been nice to actually work on his campaign, but just knowing the quality of his candidacy compels me to work hard for him. It's hard to believe I've been doing this for over a year now (I started advocating him at Smirking Chimp back in the day, but DU is MUCH cooler). I got to "meet" Kerry a couple times at events (which means shaking hands in a crowd with the standard "you rock, etc." lines), and I even got him to sign his book to DrFunkenstein.

So, no matter what happens, I think this has all been an incredible experience, and I am so glad I found DU. I may get into tiffs with other members now and then, but at the end of the day, I have deep, deep respect for the people who come to this place and contribute to our lived democracy. And I have met some wonderful DU people here in the real world. I wish I could afford to spare some cash for the website, because I think it is a fantastic resource.

In any case, thanks agin.

[sistersofmercy]

4. Yes, he is "The Best Man For The Job."

BTW, I need to explain something to you, I'll do it in a minute.

[DrFunkenstein]

6. Ever Feel Like People Don't Want To Discuss Policy?

n/t

[sistersofmercy]

7. But Kerry shouldn't have used the F-word!

:evilgrin:

[sandnsea]

12. Actually, there is no other word

He messed up. He failed miserably. His diplomacy was lacking. They really don't quite hit the mark. Sometimes that word is the only word that really hits the mark.

"Who could imagine Bush would fuck it up so badly". The diplomacy, the UN, the lies... there just is no other word to describe what Bush has done.

[sistersofmercy]

13. I should have...

put <sarcasm> in there, thought my evil grin would suffice. Sorry for the misunderstanding, I actually love it that Kerry said that on record. Earlier today there wasn't much response on this thread but a huge concern over the F-word, go figure!

[robsul82]

8. Well now...

...that there's some f***ing good s*** right f***ing there. ;)

Later.

RJS

[kerryistheanswer]

9. I agree

Kerry is the most qualified. I don't understand Dean supporters - I've been working on the Kerry campaign since August and really believe that people will come around to him.

[sistersofmercy]

10. Welcome to DU Kerryistheanswer!

I agree "people will come around to him." Welcome :hi:

[sandnsea]

11. The delivery was even better

It brought out the points he was trying to make more clearly, his passion in different parts of it. Like when he said he never understood why we don't use the wisdom of those who have gone before in foreign policy, I/P. Because building relationships is key to diplomatic relations.

"I remember meeting Li Teng-Hui, who's one of the smartest people -- obviously, you can disagree with his governance, but he knows the region as well as anybody. And he said, you know, you're the most important people to us in the world. The access to the Indian Ocean, the safety of the South China Sea, the Taiwan Straits -- I mean you run through list. But, e said, but we don't feel you here, we don't see you here. We see the Germans, the Australians, the French, the British. The United States is cavalier and casual about our relationships. And as most of you here know, particularly in the Far East, you have to build relationships on a very personal level in order to be able to reach your goals and move things.

I think I made 15 trips to Vietnam, two in one month; personally spending hours with the president and the party secretary and others, convincing them to do things that they didn't want to do, that they thought were an abomination, but which we were able to do in order to prove that we could move forward together in resolving the embargo, the normalization, and the POW/MIA issues. It takes work and it takes time to build those relationships. You can't just descend in your airplane for a few moments of discussion and walk away -- (laughter) -- and expect to be doing what's necessary to advance the cause of our country."

[adadem]

14. This is nice

for a change...no Deanies here ripping the senator apart. This is how it should be. I don't even enter Dean threads because I dislike him so much now...I only go to threads of candidates and issues I support. That's what I wish the Deanies would do.

[paulk]

15. like you said - "not the sexiest offering"

But real politics isn't sexy. It ain't about this year's model - it's about someone who's been there, understands the issues, and knows how to get things done. To me, that person is Kerry.

We need experience and smarts now more than ever - and I just have to hope our party doesn't turn it's back on our most qualified candidate.

[NewJeffCT]

16. Kerry

I'm not a huge Kerry fan (I don't have a favorite right now)... but, I was very impressed by the substance of his speech to the Council on Foreign Relations the other day. Unfortunately, I do have to agree with my wife in that his delivery was very dry.

[DrFunkenstein]

17. It Was A Policy Speech, Not A Stump Speech (Try This One)

Kerry's stump speeches are really scorchers lately, and have been getting consistently sharper. Check him out here ripping up Ashcroft, Coulter, Hannity, and the Patriot Act (which he'd replace).

http://www.johnkerry.com/pressroom/speeches/spc_2003_1201.html

[sistersofmercy]

18. WOW! What not comment from the peanut gallery?

I'm shocked!