Leon Panetta is an excellent choice to head the CIA because his primary mission will be to prevent the CIA from sabotaging an Obama Presidency the way the CIA repeatedly sabotaged the Bush Presidency. That is why it is more important to appoint a political hack with a Rolodex of powerful political allies rather than somebody who knows anything about intelligence gathering. There are other agencies that can gather intelligence. The most important thing that Panetta can do is to prevent the CIA from going all the way to becoming like Pakistan’s ISI.
If the CIA were not so powerful and dangerous it would be better to disband the agency. As the Bush administration discovered to its dismay, the CIA refuses to be reformed and it has plenty of experience in causing regime changes.
If Panetta can sit on the CIA and prevent them from causing too much trouble, he will be a success.
