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August 20, 2004/Elul 3 5764, Vol. 56, No.48
Goss hands-off on peacemaking
RON KAMPEAS
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
WASHINGTON - Rep. Porter Goss' distance from Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking was likely a plus in securing the nomination to lead the CIA.
In fact, Goss (R- Fla.), President Bush's choice to succeed George Tenet as intelligence director, is about as far from the CIA's peacemaking efforts in the Middle East as Tenet was close to it.
Tenet's intimacy with the foundering Israeli-Palestinian peace process in 2001 made him critical to President Bush's belief at the time that he should keep a line open to the process.
These days, though, Bush believes the parties are better left working things out themselves - a view Goss shares.
"Porter Goss probably comes to this with a sense that the CIA doesn't have much of a role" in Middle East peace negotiations, said Dennis Ross, President Clinton's top Middle East peace negotiator, who has briefed Goss on occasion.
"I would suspect he would prefer not to have the agency involved as it was. He's more of a traditionalist in terms of what he thinks the CIA's role ought to be."
Otherwise, Bush's decision in 2001 to keep Tenet in place and his nomination this year of Goss to succeed him are remarkably consistent.
In fact, Goss had this advice for Bush in 2001 when he was asked about Tenet: Keep him; he's a "company" man and he'll take orders. The same qualifications led Bush to nominate Goss on Aug. 10 as Tenet's replacement.
Announcing the nomination, Bush emphasized Goss' own "company" roots, first as a CIA case officer four decades ago, then as chairman of the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee since 1997 and, until recently, as one of the agency's champions in Congress.
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