Generally Unwise

This morning, President Bush nominated Air Force Gen. Michael Hayden to be the next chief of the CIA after Porter Goss' unexpected and abrupt departure last week.

While it's true that a handful of military officers have served in the post, the position is intended for a civilian. Our government has set aside these delineations intentionally. Our constitutional framework believes it is inherently dangerous for military officers to be in positions where their authority and control may muddle the waters between defense and politics. Civilians, from the Commander in Chief down oversee the military, not visa-versa.

Even more troubling, if Hayden were confirmed, it would mean that military officers would be in control of all the major spy agencies—from the ultra-secret National Security Agency to the Defense Intelligence Agency and now the CIA.

Not to mention that it was Hayden who ran the NSA and oversaw the Bush administration's domestic surveillance program, regarded by many as blatantly illegal.

The last thing we need is the impression, let alone the reality, that the CIA and the other surveillance agencies are little more than arms of the Department of Defense.