The Evansville Courier Press offered an editorial that was mildly critical of the President’s choices with respect to Porter Goss and the CIA. Mainly they went after Goss’s attempts to reward political loyalty over intelligence compentence, which is all well and good. They glossed over the objection that the proposed CIA replacement was a member of the military rather than a civilian. I think that’s a serious concern that merits more attention, but that’s not my beef with the editorial.
What surprises me is that the Courier Press managed an editorial on the abrupt Goss resignation with nary a mention of the criminal investigation into his 3rd in command, Dusty Foggo, a man promoted unexpectedly by Goss to the lofty post. Foggo is the childhood friend of Brent Wilkes, a defense contractor who is at the center of a Congressional bribery scandal that has already lead to the conviction of one Congressman, Duke Cunningham who pleaded guilty last fall to taking $2.4 million in bribes from Wilkes and others in return for federal contracts. The Congressional bribery scandal seems likely to lead to Congresswoman Katherine Harris, and Porter Goss is suspected of being connected to “poker” parties where Wilkes plied government officials with hookers.
I don’t think this is about Goss sacrificing intelligence competence for party loyalty. That appears to be the very reason he was sent to the CIA by the Bush administration. This looks to be like Goss getting his hands caught in one cookie jar or another.
Doug,
There has hardly been a mention of FORNIGATE as a possible reason Goss resigned. The most bogus reason the mighty wurlitzer is giving is that Goss was too agressive rooting out those opposed to BushCo’s pro-torture and war making agenda. And of course all those who have been fired or resigned under protest since Goss was put in charged have been label LIBERALS even if they were life long principaled conservatives.