[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 97 (Thursday, July 10, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7225-S7226]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           EXECUTIVE SESSION

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NOMINATION OF GEORGE JOHN TENET, OF MARYLAND, TO BE DIRECTOR OF CENTRAL 
                              INTELLIGENCE

  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to executive session to consider the following nomination 
reported from the Intelligence Committee: George Tenet, to be Director 
of Central Intelligence.
  I further ask unanimous consent that the nomination be confirmed, the 
motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, any statements relating to 
the nomination appear at the appropriate place in the Record, the 
President be immediately notified of the Senate's action, and the 
Senate then return to legislative session.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The nomination was considered and confirmed as follows:

       George John Tenet, of Maryland, to be Director of Central 
     Intelligence.

  Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I am pleased to inform my colleagues that 
today the Select Committee on Intelligence unanimously voted to 
favorably report the nomination of Mr. George J. Tenet to be the next 
Director of Central Intelligence.
  Although the committee held hearings in May, shortly after receiving 
the nomination from the President, the committee postponed final action 
pending the conclusion of a preliminary investigation by the Department 
of Justice.
  The Attorney General was required to make a determination of whether 
to recommend the appointment of an independent counsel to investigate 
allegations involving Mr. Tenet's financial holdings and disclosure.
  Today, the committee was officially notified that the Attorney 
General had concluded that no further investigation was warranted and 
that she would not seek appointment of an independent counsel.
  The Vice Chairman, Senator Kerrey, and I promptly convened a meeting 
of the committee and voted to favorably report the nomination to the 
full Senate. This prompt action by the committee, once the Justice 
Department investigation was completed, reflects the strong support Mr. 
Tenet has among the members of the committee.
  Mr. Tenet faces some daunting challenges as he prepares to officially 
assume the responsibilities of the Director of Central Intelligence.
  He must successfully guide the intelligence community toward new and 
far more difficult missions. He must ensure that the quality and 
integrity of his people remains high.
  He must provide thorough and unbiased analysis to this Nation's 
policy-makers and he must keep, as he has pledged, the Congress fully 
and currently informed of all intelligence activities.
  The latter point is very important, Mr. President, because the 
intelligence community, and specifically the Central Intelligence 
Agency, has not enjoyed a great deal of public support in recent years.
  It will be Mr. Tenet's responsibility to restore the public 
confidence in his organization, and he can do that by remaining 
faithful to the values of this Nation and by ensuring that the people's 
representatives are kept fully appraised of all the community's 
activities.
  The intelligence community is rich with outstanding Americans, many 
of whom risk their lives to protect the security of this Nation. These 
people place a great deal of trust in their leadership and it is up to 
Mr. Tenet to honor that trust. The committee believes that he will.
  Mr. President, it is with pleasure that I recommend, as chairman of 
the Select Committee on Intelligence, that the Senate unanimously 
approve the nomination of George John Tenet to the next Director of 
Central Intelligence.
  Mr. KERREY. Mr. President, I rise to urge my colleagues to confirm 
the President's nominee, George J. Tenet, to be Director of Central 
Intelligence. He served as Deputy Director from May 1995 until January 
of this year, he has served as acting Director since that time, and he 
has already proven to be a highly competent, knowledgeable, capable 
leader of our Intelligence Community.
  As many of my colleagues know, Mr. Tenet's nomination has been before 
the Intelligence Committee since April. In hearings and in written 
responses for the record, Mr. Tenet answered all the committee's 
questions to the Committee's satisfaction. My sense is Mr. Tenet has 
enjoyed the unanimous support of the Committee since April. However, 
the Committee chose not to report this nomination to the Senate until 
completion of an investigation of Mr. Tenet by the Attorney General 
under the Independent Counsel Reauthorization Act of 1994. The 
investigation was initiated April 23, 1997, and the completed report of 
investigation was filed with the United States Court of Appeals for the 
District of Columbia on July 7, 1997. The Committee has been informed 
that the Attorney General ``determined that there are no reasonable 
grounds to believe that further investigation is warranted. She is not 
seeking the appointment of an independent counsel.'' Having received 
this report, the Committee voted today to favorably report the 
nomination. The vote was unanimous.
  The Attorney General's investigation was triggered by anomalies in 
Mr. Tenet's financial reporting statement and biographical 
questionnaire. In my view these were minor and fully explicable 
anomalies. Given the high standards set in the Independent Counsel Act, 
the fact that the investigation has been closed without the appointment 
of an

[[Page S7226]]

independent counsel suggests to me that the Attorney General shares my 
assessment did nothing wrong.
  The necessity for the investigation created an unfortunate delay, as 
well as a burden for Mr. Tenet and members of his family. The delay 
caused by the investigation did not, from what I have seen, create a 
vacuum in leadership at the CIA. Even as the Acting Director, Mr. Tenet 
has provided steady direction to the Intelligence Community. 
Nonetheless, there is no substitute in government for the authority 
that comes with Senate confirmation, so I am most pleased the 
nomination can move forward and Mr. Tenet can be fully empowered.
  As Chairman Shelby and I told our colleagues during the recent debate 
on the Intelligence Authorization bill, the end of the Cold War did by 
no means mark a diminution in the importance of intelligence to our 
national security. Sound policy and sound strategy are illuminated by 
sound intelligence, by the sometimes small amount of secret information 
that gives full meaning to the masses of freely available information. 
As technology continues in its revolutionary cycles, victory in war is 
more than ever the result of the linkage of American valor with 
American intelligence and American precision weapons. So intelligence 
continues to be essential to our survival and our ability to lead in 
the world. One of Mr. Tenet's many tasks will be to convince the public 
that intelligence still matters, and that the public can count on the 
integrity, patriotism, and morality of those who serve the nation in 
the Intelligence Community. Mr. Tenet is well suited for this task--he 
is a highly effective communicator.
  Another task for Mr. Tenet will be to lead those who are serving. The 
CIA and the other intelligence agencies include people who take risks 
for our country, as well as some of the smartest and most skilled 
analysts, scientists, and technicians in the country. They deserve 
leadership that fully challenges their talents, rewards their 
successes, maintains an environment of high integrity, enforces 
accountability, and adds to their pride in their profession. They also 
deserve leadership that will remain with them long enough to really 
make a difference. I believe George Tenet will provide that leadership, 
and I urge his confirmation.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I am going to pause a minute to speak 
about this nomination. I was privileged to serve for 8 years on the 
Intelligence Committee, the last 2 years being the vice chairman. 
During that period of time, Mr. Tenet was one of the senior staff 
members on the committee. I gained a firsthand knowledge of this 
individual, not only of his professional capabilities, which are 
superb, but his character and his judgment.
  I commend the President and all those who have worked to see that 
this fine American takes on this very, very important responsibility. I 
have confidence in him, and I am confident that he will represent our 
country very ably in this important post. I wish him, his lovely wife 
and his family well.

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