So Leon Panetta might start unraveling the CIA budget....

[KittyWampus]

I could imagine Diane Feinstein and other Dems and Repubs wouldn't like that to happen.

So much money just gets lost in that giant black hole no one ever has the guts to start poking around in.

From TPM:

Panetta is considered more of a budget expert than an intelligence specialist, but he has a strong progressive background and has eloquently argued against Bush era spying tactics. Panetta also served on the Iraq Study Group in 2006 and formerly chaired the Center for National Policy.

We have calls in to the Obama transition office as well as the Panetta Institute, his current home at California State University, and will update as soon as we hear more.

Late Update: Despite Panetta's lack of nitty-gritty intel experience, his selection is a welcome sign after some reports that current CIA chief Mike Hayden might be asked to stay on. Panetta's fiscal expertise could mean good things for the long-neglected task of intelligence spending reform, a herculean task that involves merging competing fiefdoms of powerful lawmakers on the Appropriations Committee.

[Thrill]

1. Only the Bush enabling Dems are making a fuss about this while

the BS fighters are saying this.

“Leon Panetta is a smart, savvy DC veteran and a strong choice to lead the CIA," said Sen. Ron Wyden

[Ichingcarpenter]

2. Sen. Ron Wyden sounds like change I can believe in vs

Rockefeller and Feinstein.

[mod mom]

8. TPM reporting Ron Wyden was consulted a head of time:

On a Need To Know Basis
01.06.09 -- 7:53AM By David Kurtz
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), a less senior member of the Senate intel committee, says he was consulted in advance on the Panetta pick for CIA, so I'm starting to think that not alerting incoming chair Dianne Feinstein or outgoing chair Jay Rockefeller was not necessarily an inadvertent oversight by the Obama team.

-snip
http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2009/01/on_a_need_to_know_basis.php


Sounds like Obama wants to put an end to business as usual.

[Thrill]

10. Looks like Obama wanted someone to shake things up and Feinstein had been pushing

one of the pro torture Bush cronies Steve Kappes

[Fearless]

4. I'll fire up the popcorn machine... this could be fun by the looks of this place lately...

:popcorn:

[AtomicKitten]

5. Exactly. n/t

[natrat]

3. and he might even be that elusive honest and well intended politician

[thunder rising]

6. Looks like a good (unexpected) angle. I'll give'em a shot.

[tularetom]

7. He might even find out how much $ Feinstein has made off this clusterfuck

and we can't have that, can we.

[mmonk]

9. And don't forget other enemies of freedom such as Harman.

This should be interesting.