Washington, DC - Following her successful hearing before Congress last week, public officials, commentators, and editorial boards are commending Gina Haspel and urging the Senate to confirm her as CIA Director.
DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE DAN COATS IN USA TODAY: At CIA, Gina Haspel Will Make Sure “We Never Have to Relearn Lessons of the Past”
“I ask my former colleagues in the Senate to do the right thing for our country by confirming Gina. She represents the best we have to offer as a country. Gina is a trailblazer who has earned this opportunity by serving this country in challenging assignments at home and abroad. I, along with the CIA and the entire Intelligence Community, am eager to have her at the helm of the CIA.”
SEN. JOHN CORNYN (R-TX) IN THE WASHINGTON POST: Gina Haspel Won this Week, and She’ll Keep Winning
“Anyone who has carefully studied her record knows that she should be confirmed for three reasons: her qualifications, her character and the spurious nature of her critics’ claims … The president recently tweeted, ‘Win Gina!’ That is what Haspel — calm and composed even under intense scrutiny — did at the hearing this week, and that’s what she’ll do as the first female director of the CIA.”
FORMER CHIEF COUNSEL TO SEN. DIANNE FEINSTEIN (D-CA) STEVEN CASH IN THE HILL: Gina Haspel Should be Confirmed
“Gina Haspel’s nomination to be the next Director of Central Intelligence is being considered by the U.S. Senate. The first woman, and the first career intelligence professional since Director William Casey to lead the CIA, Haspel promises to be an excellent, apolitical and talented leader. She should be confirmed.”
NO LABELS CHIEF STRATEGIST RYAN CLANCY IN THE HILL: Another Battle Between Politics and Common Sense
“Gina Haspel appears eminently qualified to lead the CIA, having served for more than three decades as an intelligence officer and station chief in various countries throughout the world. Maybe more important, people who have worked with her — CIA directors who have served both Republican and Democratic presidents, not to mention a wide range of CIA officers — have expressed their strong support for her nomination.”
SINCLAIR BROADCAST GROUP CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST BORIS EPSHTEYN: Gina Haspel Is as Qualified as it Gets to Lead the CIA
“Here is the bottom line: Gina Haspel is as qualified as it gets to be CIA director. With all of the challenges facing America, this is no time to play political games with the Central Intelligence Agency. Gina Haspel should be confirmed as quickly as possible.”
AKRON BEACON JOURNAL/OHIO.COM EDITORIAL BOARD: A CIA Director from the Inside
“The keen skills and experience that Gina Haspel would bring to the job of CIA director are clear. She has been applauded by former directors, from Republican and Democratic administrations. Richard Burr, a North Carolina Republican and chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, echoed many in saying at her confirmation hearing this week that Haspel is ‘without a doubt, the most qualified person the president could have chosen to lead the CIA, and the most prepared nominee in its 70-year history.’”
THE HERALD (SHARON, PENNSYLVANIA) EDITORIAL BOARD: How Soon Washington Forgets Horror of September 11
“Haspel has street cred — she is a 30-year agent who has been part of dangerous operations all over the world. She is rather impressively qualified to take on one of the toughest jobs in Washington because of the risks she has taken and the work she has done … We need someone like Haspel who doesn’t play the game because she understands just how terrible the price can be. And those who are having their 15 minutes of fame grilling her would do well to remember that, too.”
THE MOREHEAD NEWS (KENTUCKY) EDITORIAL BOARD: Gina Haspel Deserves the CIA Directorship
“Numerous experienced intelligence operatives agree that Haspel would be the best prepared CIA director in the agency’s 70-year history. In our opinion, she is exactly the right person to make sure our country has the valuable foreign intelligence needed to keep national leaders well informed so that they can properly protect the American people. And the fact that she’s a proud Kentuckian is a bonus for all of us.”
