Ex-C.I.A. Official Says Bolton Interfered
John R. Bolton's effort in 2002 to oust a top Central Intelligence Agency analyst from his post in a dispute over Cuba represented a troubling breach of the line between policy makers and intelligence, the agency's former deputy director has told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, according to a transcript of the exchange.
The ex-official, John E. McLaughlin, who spent 32 years in the C.I.A., said the episode was "the only time I had ever heard of such a request" from a policy maker, that a C.I.A. officer or analyst be transferred.
The analyst, Fulton Armstrong, was the national intelligence officer for Latin America and had clashed with Mr. Bolton's office about a speech that Mr. Armstrong thought overstated the extent of Cuba's weapons programs.
"It's perfectly all right for a policy maker to express disagreement with an N.I.O. or an analyst, and it's perfectly all right for them to challenge such an individual vigorously, challenge their work vigorously," Mr. McLaughlin told the committee on April 29, according to an unedited transcript. "But I think it's different to then request, because of the disagreement, that the person be transferred. And - unless there is malfeasance involved here, and in this case, I had a high regard for the individual's work - therefore, I had a strong negative reaction to the suggestion about moving him."
... Among those interviewed on Friday were Lawrence Wilkerson, who served as chief of staff to Colin L. Powell when he was secretary of state. Mr. Wilkerson said after his testimony that he had told the committee that he had not been speaking as a proxy for Mr. Powell, who is known to have separately expressed some reservations about Mr. Bolton's nomination. But Mr. Wilkerson said he believed that he regarded Mr. Bolton as "an extremely poor leader" and "not an effective diplomat."
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