No arm-twisting to tout Haspel

LANGLEY, Va. — President Trump praised new CIA Director Gina Haspel at her swearing-in ceremony Monday, saying there is “no one in this country better qualified” for the job.

Trump also hailed the agency staffers, calling them the “most elite intelligence professionals on the planet” and promised them “the tools, the resources and the support they need.”

The Senate confirmed Haspel last week after overcoming concerns about her role in the agency’s use of harsh interrogation techniques after 9/11. Trump said she showed courage during the process in the face of “very negative politics.”

Haspel, 61, is a 33-year veteran of the agency, and the first woman to lead it.

Trump tapped the Kentucky native to lead the nation’s premier intelligence agency after he nominated then-CIA Director Mike Pompeo to succeed Rex Tillerson as secretary of state.