The CIA spent tens of millions of dollars to hire a controversial private security firm to seek out and assassinate al-Qaeda leaders, The New York Times reports. Four years ago, the spy agency contracted Blackwater USA, which gained national attention for its aggressive tactics in Iraq and New Orleans during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, to help with planning, training and surveillance. However, the Times reports, the CIA got very little for the millions it spent, since Blackwater never successfully captured or killed any terrorist suspects. “The fact that the C.I.A. used an outside company for the program was a major reason that Leon E. Panetta, the C.I.A.’s director, became alarmed and called an emergency meeting in June to tell Congress that the agency had withheld details of the program for seven years,” the Times writes. “It is unclear whether the C.I.A. had planned to use the contractors to actually capture or kill Qaeda operatives, or just to help with training and surveillance in the program. American spy agencies have in recent years outsourced some highly controversial work, including the interrogation of prisoners. But government officials said that bringing outsiders into a program with lethal authority raised deep concerns about accountability in covert operations.” Blackwater officials denied having a formal contract with Blackwater for an assassination program, but acknowledged that it had “individual agreements with top company officials, including the founder, Erik D. Prince, a politically connected former member of the Navy Seals and the heir to a family fortune.”

The man who President Barack Obama wants to lead the CIA says he’s “absolutely convinced” that America can be kept safe without the use of torture against its enemies. Leon Panetta told officials at his confirmation hearing this week that if a “ticking time bomb situation” arose and a suspected terrorist wasn’t cooperating, Panetta would ask Obama for added authority in using techniques to get vital information. Obama has spoken out against torture methods, though the CIA has previously used waterboarding, which simulates drowning, to interrogate some captives. The United States has also reportedly sent suspects to nations that are known to use torture in handling suspected terrorists.                                                

Right-wing Viper Spits Venom At Obamas
Conservative columnist Ann Coulter, who uses her tongue as a flame-thrower against her liberal rivals, has been torching Michelle Obama lately, calling the new first lady a tacky Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis imitator. In her latest book, “Guilty: Liberal ‘Victims’ and their Assault on America,” Coulter says of Michelle Obama, “Her obvious imitation of Jackie O’s style – the flipped-under hair, the sleeveless A-line dresses, the short strands of fake pearls – would have been laughable if done by anyone other than a media-designated saint.” Of course Coulter saved her praises for Republican first lady wannabe Cindy McCain, the wife of defeated presidential candidate John McCain, saying that she “dressed well without freakishly imitating famous First Ladies in history.” She also derisively refers to Michelle Obama as a “Mother Teresa” and President-elect Obama as “B. Hussein Obama” and dismissed the first lady’s career as one that has “advanced in lockstep with the political advancement of her husband.”

Obama Transition Hits a Glitch
President-elect Barack Obama’s so-far smooth transition into the White House suddenly hit a couple bumps in the road. First of all, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, Obama’s appointment to head the Commerce Department, abruptly withdrew his name from consideration because he was a target of an investigation into whether there was a pay-to-play scheme involving the award of a lucrative contract for a New Mexico firm, CDR Financial Products. In expressing “serious regret” over Richardson stepping down, Obama said, “It is a measure of his willingness to put the nation first that he has removed himself as a candidate for the Cabinet to avoid any delay in filling this important economic post at this critical time.” “Although we must move quickly to fill the void left by Gov. Richardson’s decision, I look forward to his future service to our country and in my administration.” On Monday, the president-elect was struck with another blow. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), who now heads the committee that oversees the CIA, and the outgoing chairman of the committee, Sen. John D. Rockefeller (D-W.V.), made it clear that they are not pleased with Obama’s pick to head the nation’s top spy agency. Both expressed concern that the president-elect had chosen former Congressman and former Clinton Chief of Staff Leon Panetta, a CIA outsider. “My position has consistently been that I believe the agency is best served by having an intelligence professional in charge at this time,” Feinstein said. Sen. Christopher S. Bond of Missouri, the ranking Republican on the Intelligence Committee, said he would be “looking hard at Panetta’s intelligence expertise and qualifications.”

Roland Burris Is Ready But the Senate Is Not. Although members of the U.S. Senate have denounced his appointment to President-elect Obama’s former Senate seat, former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris told reporters Tuesday morning, “I am the junior senator according to every law book in the nation.” Burris’ comments came during a news conference at Chicago’s Midway Airport before he hopped a flight to Baltimore yesterday, The New York Times reports.  The candidate’s self-assurance was almost amusing, considering that Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White has refused to sign the paperwork that would officially send him to the U.S. Senate.  Read the rest here.