IN THE NEWS
The White House announced that it embraces the idea of a national intelligence director responsible for coordinating and distilling intelligence across the several civilian and military agencies now in this business. (Good news.) However, the Bush Administration doesn't agree with the recommendations of the Senate Select Committee on Iraqi pre-war intelligence and the 9/11 Commission to elevate this new position to the Cabinet level. (Bad news.)
In Washingtonian bureaucratic politics, if you want something to get done in the executive branch, you get the President's full weight behind it. When Bush appointed Tom Ridge to head Homeland Security, he made a great deal of noise about how Ridge's office would be near his own, and the new Department of Homeland Security would get his direct, regular attention.
Therefore, the new national intelligence director position, if it ever really materializes, will have responsibility, but no authority. Neither this new director nor the proposed counterterrorism command center will be in the White House, so the rest of the bureaucracy will get the message: play along at the level of appearances, but otherwise, go about your business.
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