Fight Looms in Senate for CIA's Next Chief

May 7, 2006 — -- Just two days after Porter Goss quit his post as CIA director, key senators from both parties are voicing both praise and concerns about the man expected to be nominated to replace him.

In an exclusive appearance on "This Week with George Stephanopoulos," Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., gave cautious praise of Gen. Michael Hayden, currently the deputy director of national intelligence and possibly President Bush's pick to be the next CIA director.

"I think General Hayden is a logical choice; he is very well respected, he is a professional, he's run an agency twice the size of the CIA," she said.

But Feinstein, one of the top members of the Senate Intelligence Committee, quickly offered a caveat, "[The CIA] is a civilian agency," taking issue with Hayden's status as a active-duty Air Force general. The California Democrat suggested, "He might think about resigning his position if he's thinking about doing this."

Sen. Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., complimented Hayden as "a class individual" but voiced concerns as well.

"I think that he is part of the military today is the problem...putting (on) a pinstripe suit instead of a military suit, (it) doesn't make much difference," he said during an exclusive Sunday morning interview on "This Week."

Feinstein took particular note of Hayden's involvement in the creation of the NSA surveillance program which wiretapped an untold number of U.S. citizens.

"The domestic surveillance program has been put together by the NSA and, of course, he was part of the NSA at that time ... you can be sure members have major questions about this program," she said.

In a February interview with George Stephanopoulos, Hayden dismissed concerns that innocent Americans might be caught in the NSA's wiretapping net.

"I can't get into operational details, but the way we do this is based on the people most knowledgeable of al Qaeda, its communications, its intentions, its tactics, techniques and procedures. And so we really don't have the time or the resources, the linguists, to linger, to go after things that aren't going to protect the homeland."

Differing Views of Goss' Tenure

Today, Chambliss applauded ousted CIA Director Porter Goss, who reportedly left at the insistence of the nation's top intelligence chief, John Negroponte, but he stopped short of criticizing Bush's decision to accept Goss's resignation.

Feinstein and Chambliss, although they offered differing assessments of the CIA's morale, agreed that Goss made significant changes to the CIA's infrastructure.

"Porter was asked to get in there and make wholesale changes and that's not popular," he said.

"Now, whoever steps in, is going to have a difficult time for a morale standpoint." The next director will be the third at the CIA's top post in just two years.

Feinstein, anticipating lively confirmation hearings if the president picks Hayden, said the shakeup will likely give the spy agency a boost.

"I think in a way [a new CIA Director is] going to bring a fresh breathe of air," she said.

George Stephanopoulos's entire interview with Senator Feinstein & Senator Chambliss, and a recent interview with Air Force General Michael Hayden can be viewed at www.thisweek.abcnews.com.