Update: CIA's Deputy Director Suddenly Decides To 'Retire'

In a follow-up to my story this morning and my ongoing series about the CIA’s vicious war on the Department of Defense that is partly being waged in the pages of the nation’s major newspapers, the Washington Post is reporting that the CIA’s Deputy Director, Stephen Kappes will “retire” and be replaced by career Agency man Michael Morell.

While I have been averse to mentioning Kappes by name, when I was informed last night that the CIA had leaked to the New York Times the names of Americans covertly providing Force Protection to our troops in Afghanistan and that the Times was going to run with those names, I couldn’t hold back any longer.

As the Agency has blindly followed what has become known as the “Kappes Doctrine” it has made mistake after mistake after mistake; all underscored by the horrible F.O.B. Chapman attack, one of its most deadly. Something tells me that there won’t be anyone baking any cakes for Mr. Kappes’ sendoff.

There are lots and lots of problems at the Central Intelligence Agency and Kappes’ fingerprints are all over them. He had become toxic not only for the CIA, but for the Obama Administration, which explains why, after my piece ran this morning, the bus was warmed up and Kappes was told to lie down in front of it. Ask anyone in the intelligence world – there are no such things as coincidences.

The situation at Langley needs to change. Getting rid of Kappes is a good start, but there’s a lot more people among the Agency’s dysfunctional leadership and its cover-your-ass management who need to make up their minds about whether they are going to be defined by getting promoted or by doing their jobs and keeping America safe.

Let’s hope that Kappes’ replacement, Michael Morell, learns from his predecessor’s mistakes.