Biden chooses veteran diplomat as director of CIA
WASHINGTON — William Burns, a wellknown figure in diplomatic circles around the world, is Presidentelect Joe Biden’s choice to lead the CIA, a selection likely to be embraced by the rankandfile at the nation’s premier spy agency.
A former ambassador to Russia and Jordan, Burns, 64, had a 33year career at the State Department under both Republican and Democratic presidents. He rose through the ranks to become deputy secretary of state before retiring in 2014 to run the Carnegie Endowment of International Peace.
He would succeed Gina Haspel, the first female CIA director, who guided the agency under President Trump. Trump frequently disparaged the assessments of U. S. spy agencies, especially about Russia’s interference in the 2016 election to help his campaign.
Michael Morell, a career intelligence officer and former acting director of the CIA whose name was floated to hold the top position under Biden, praised the pick.
“I’ve known Bill Burns for decades. … His command of the issues, his deep respect for intelligence, and his care for people will ensure” he will be one of the great CIA directors, Morell tweeted.
Trump often placed quote marks around the word intelligence in his tweets, implying that he doesn’t agree with the term, and has fired several career professionals in favor of loyalists, including some with little to no experience in the field.
Amid tumult in the State Department after Trump took office in 2017, Burns held his tongue until last year when he began writing highly critical pieces of the Trump administration’s policies in Foreign Affairs and other publications. Burns has been a staunch advocate of rebuilding and restructuring the foreign service, positions Biden has aligned himself with.
“Bill Burns is an exemplary diplomat with decades of experience on the world stage keeping our people and our country safe and secure,” Biden said in a statement Monday. “He shares my profound belief that intelligence must be apolitical and that the dedicated intelligence professionals serving our nation deserve our gratitude and respect.”
Burns has advanced degrees from Oxford University, joined the foreign service in 1982 and before being named ambassador to Russia in 2005, served as a top aide to former Secretaries of State William Christopher and Madeleine Albright as well as director of the State Department’s policy planning office.
He has received three Presidential Distinguished Service Awards and the highest civilian honors from the Pentagon and the U. S. intelligence community.