May 22, 2003

Was Iraq Intelligence Politicized? A

Was Iraq Intelligence Politicized?

A crucial issue, while not being investigated per se, appears to be getting looked into a bit by an ombudsman at the CIA's Directorate of Intelligence as well as, tangentially, pursuant to a review George Tenet has organized to compare pre-war intelligence about Iraq with what is being uncovered (or not uncovered) post-war:

But the review comes at a time of increasing tension between the Pentagon and C.I.A. over the handling of intelligence. Intelligence officials said that several C.I.A. analysts had quietly complained that senior Defense Department officials and other Bush administration officials sought to press them to produce reports that supported the administration's positions on Iraq. In addition, several current and former C.I.A. officers who have been upset about what they believe has been the politicization of intelligence concerning Iraq were the first to disclose the existence of the new C.I.A. review.

A senior intelligence official cautioned that the review was not designed as a formal investigation or a "witch hunt," but rather as an intellectual exercise to find ways to improve the way the intelligence community works.

"This is not a report card," on Iraqi intelligence, the official said. "We really want to find ways to make the intelligence community work better."

So far, it would seem that fears that the Pentagon pressured CIA analysts to hype up intelligence reports or too energetically pursue potentially dubious information from politically movitated Iraqi exiles appear overblown:

"Despite the friction over Iraq-related intelligence, officials said Monday that a special ombudsman inside the C.I.A.'s Directorate of Intelligence had received only one complaint from a C.I.A. analyst about the way in which specific intelligence on Iraq was handled. The ombudsman determined that the analyst's complaint that the problem stemmed from the politicization of the intelligence on Iraq was unfounded.

"I really think that the press reports of friction between the C.I.A. and Pentagon are overdrawn," said one senior intelligence official. "I can tell you that Tenet and Rumsfeld have a very good relationship."