Democrats should focus more on intelligence reform, legislator says
Democrats could pay a political price during the November elections if they oppose Goss’ nomination too vigorously.
Senate Democrats should focus more on the broader issue of intelligence reform and less on opposing the confirmation of Representative Porter Goss, R-Fla., as the new CIA director, the top Democrat on the House intelligence panel said Sunday.
"I think that to get stuck in a fight about Porter Goss, after tough questions have been answered by Porter Goss, is not where we ought to be this fall. We ought to be implementing the recommendations of the 9/11 commission," Rep. Jane Harman, D-Calif., said on NBC's Meet the Press. President Bush last week publicly announced his choice of Goss, who previously chaired the House Intelligence Committee, to head the CIA. Many Senate Democrats afterward did not comment directly on the merits of Goss' nomination, saying instead that they would use his confirmation hearings to discuss broader intelligence reform issues.
The president's choice has been most opposed, though, by the top Democrat on the Senate intelligence panel, Sen. Jay Rockefeller, W.Va. Even prior the official nomination, Rockefeller criticized Goss as being too "political" of a choice. The senator continued his criticisms after Bush's announcement last week, calling Goss's nomination a "mistake."
There are concerns, though, that Democrats could pay a political price during the November elections if they oppose Goss' nomination too vigorously. During the 2000 elections, Republicans were able to use then-Sen. Max Cleland's, D-Ga., opposition to the White House's stance on the creation of a Homeland Security Department in their successful effort to unseat him.
Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Pat Roberts, R-Kan., said Sunday on Meet the Press that while Rockefeller may oppose Goss' nomination, he has agreed to "expedite" his confirmation hearings. Saying that he believed Goss would be confirmed, Roberts defended Bush's choice.
"I understand that people have differences. I have differences all the time, but it doesn't mean that that person couldn't serve in a very fine capacity regardless of what the president tried to simply appoint them to," Roberts said.
Harman agreed that Goss would probably be confirmed. She described his nomination, though, as a "missed opportunity" for the White House to detail its stance on reforming the intelligence community.
Once confirmed, Goss would probably remain as CIA director regardless of who wins the November presidential election, be it the incumbent Bush or challenger Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., Roberts said.
"You can't find anybody that's been a military intelligence officer, also a Central Intelligence Agency intelligence officer, and the chairman, understanding the politics of this, of the House Intelligence Committee. He's a good man," Roberts said.
A number of committees in both the House of Representatives and the Senate this week are scheduled to continue with hearings on intelligence reform and the recommendations of the Sept. 11 commission, such as the creation of national intelligence director. On the Senate side, Roberts said Sunday that legislation implementing intelligence reform would be ready by early October. He added that the politics surrounding the November election should not be allowed to affect reform efforts.
"I think we can get this done, and I hope we can get it done on a bipartisan basis. Yes, it's happening during an election year, but this issue transcends politics, and the terrorist does not wait. This year we have to move, and we have to move now," Roberts said.
Harman criticized the pace at which the House is moving on intelligence reform, reiterating her calls for markup hearings on reform legislation that has already been introduced.
"The House is way behind the Senate in terms of bipartisan reform," she said.