(CNSNews.com) - Vice President-elect Joe Biden told CNSNews.com on Tuesday that Leon Panetta was an excellent choice to be director of the Central Intelligence Agency but that President-elect Obama should have consulted with Senate leaders on the choice first.
Incoming Senate Intelligence Chair Dianne Feinstein (D.-Calif.) has been critical of Panetta’s lack of intelligence experience and the fact that she was not consulted on his selection. Outgoing Chair Jay Rockefeller (D.-W.V.) has been similarly critical.
“I think that Leon Panetta is totally qualified for this job,” Biden told CNSNews.com at the Capitol on Tuesday. “He has been a consumer of intelligence for a long time. He has been a chief of staff. He understands the agency well and what the agency needs now is a strong figure who understands how it functions and is going to take it on a new track.”
Biden indicated it was a mistake, however, for Obama not to consult with Feinstein before choosing Panetta.
“I am still a Senate man and I always think this way: I think it’s always good to talk to the requisite members of Congress,” Biden said when asked if he thought it was a mistake for Obama not to talk to Feinstein. “I think it was just a mistake.”
Rockefeller told CNSNews.com on Tuesday that he remained “puzzled” as to why Obama did not consult with him before selecting Panetta.
“That’s a provocative way to say it,” said Rockefeller when CNSNews.com asked him if he thought the country would be less secure if Panetta was appointed. “I think the world of intelligence post-9/11 is totally different then it was when he [Panetta] was in government.”
Rockefeller added that the “president-elect” would be calling him later that afternoon “since he didn’t do it before.”
Panetta served in the House of Representatives from 1976 until 1993 when he became the budget director for President Bill Clinton. In 1994, he became Clinton’s chief of staff, a position he held until January 2007.
Panetta also served on the Iraq Study Group that issued a report critical of the conduct of the Iraq War in 2006.
Feinstein, the incoming chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, was critical of Panetta’s nomination after it was leaked to the media on Monday.
“I was not informed about the selection of Leon Panetta to be the CIA director,” said Feinstein. “My position has consistently been that I believe the agency is best served by having an intelligence professional in charge at this time.”
Feinstein told reporters on Tuesday that both Obama and Biden had called to apologize for not informing her of their pick.
"I have been contacted by both President-elect Obama and Vice President-elect Biden, and they have explained to me the reasons why they believe Leon Panetta is the best candidate for CIA Director," said Feinstein.
Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), who served as Intelligence chairman from 2002 to 2007, told CNSNews.com on Tuesday that he was also concerned by Obama’s choice.
“My preference would have been for the president to keep Michael Hayden in for a six month for him to transition because of the things happening in Israel, and with Putin and all of things that face us,” said Roberts. “There is nobody better than Mike Hayden.”
When asked if he thought Panetta was qualified for the position right now, Roberts said: “I think he will be in a very short time.”
Sen. Pete Domenici (R-N.M.), who was serving his last day as senator on Tuesday, also expressed criticism of Obama’s choice.
“I believe that the issue being raised is a very fair criticism,” Domenici told CNSNews.com. “The CIA should probably have an expert running it and they are going to have to answer how they are going to do that. Panetta is great friend and a long-time worker but that doesn’t make up for the lack of specific knowledge Feinstein is talking about. She is right.”