Is Panetta 'an Awful Pick' Or Does His Selection Make Sense?

By Michael Barone, Thomas Jefferson Street blog

I wrote yesterday about Barack Obama's surprising choice of Leon Panetta to head the CIA. Here are two contrasting opinions on the nomination, both from writers I respect: David Ignatius is pleasantly surprised; Ralph Peters is outraged by "an awful pick." Interestingly, both see Panetta as in some sense a political choice. Ignatius thinks Panetta can advance the agency's case (or the case of its career professionals) politically. Peters says he's an appointee who can convince the left that "intelligence will be emasculated."

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By Michael Barone