George Tenet news stories on Newser

Cheney: I Wanted to Bomb Syria

Mark Russell — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 11:52:09 CDT

And the revelations from Dick Cheney's new memoir just keep coming: yesterday, news of a secret resignation letter. Today, the New York Times , which obtained a copy of In My Time , reports that Cheney pushed Bush to bomb what the US believed to be a nuclear reactor site in Syria...

Prosecute Bush, Cronies: Human Rights Watch

Evann Gastaldo — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 10:02:02 CDT

Human Rights Watch wants George W. Bush and his top officials prosecuted for war crimes and criminal conspiracy, the Guardian reports. In a new report, the US group calls for foreign governments to move forward with the prosecution if the Obama administration does not investigate. In addition to allegations of...

CIA Chiefs Ask Obama to Scrap Interrogation Probe

Nick McMaster — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 15:05:55 CDT

Seven former CIA directors—appointees of both political parties—are calling on the Obama administration to call off the Justice Department’s investigation of Bush-era interrogation practices, the Hill reports. The probe, ordered by AG Eric Holder, will reveal too much about the CIA’s methods in an environment where "success often...

Judge: CIA Used Fraud to Get Wiretap Case Dismissed

Kevin Spak — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 09:23:09 CDT

US District Judge Royce Lamberth released hundreds of secret filings yesterday, saying the CIA falsely claimed that state secrets were involved in a 15-year-old wiretapping lawsuit, McClatchy reports. The agency allowed the judge to continue believing that an agent involved in the case was undercover, when in reality that cover...

CIA Assassination Scheme No Big Deal In-House

Harry Kimball — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 13:42:01 CDT

Not only was the CIA's “targeted killing” program an “open secret,” but there's also “less to it than meets the eye,” Robert Baer writes for Time. The former intelligence officer notes that the Washington Post broke the story in 2001, and a New York Times reporter's book gave the name...

Tenet Denies Drunken Rant About 'the Jews'

Ambreen Ali — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 14:28:01 CST

George Tenet is vehemently denying a report in a new book that the then-CIA director railed against Bush administration neocons, "referring to them with exaxperation [sic] as, 'the Jews,'" the Atlantic reports. The incident took place in Saudi Prince Bandar's pool after Tenet downed half a bottle of scotch,...

Obama's In for an Awkward CIA Transition

Kevin Spak — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 12:08:06 CST

On the campaign trail, Barack Obama frequently railed against the CIA’s secret jails and harsh interrogation techniques. Now, he must lead the agency, and the transition’s already proving rocky, the New York Times reports. Liberal outcry derailed his rumored pick for director, John Brennan. Brennan was chief of staff for...

CIA Obstructed 9/11 Inquiry, Commission Heads Charge

Kevin Spak — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 09:50:00 CST

By withholding and ultimately destroying videotapes of the interrogation of al-Qaeda detainees, the CIA willfully obstructed the 9/11 commission, its top two members charge in today’s New York Times . Thomas Kean and Lee Hamilton say the CIA repeatedly stonewalled their investigation in 2003-04, answering questions vaguely, denying access to prisoners,...

Curveball's True Identity Comes to Light

Nick McMaster — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 17:56:44 CDT

Curveball, the Iraqi informant whose tall tales of mass weaponry helped push the US to war, has been identified by 60 Minutes as a lousy student—not the brilliant chemical engineer he claimed to be—who lied through his teeth to get his green card. This week's show names him...