Thread by @DavidPriess

THREAD: This article describes the full CIA leadership team now aiding Gina Haspel:

— Deputy Director Vaughn Bishop

— Chief Operating Officer Andy Makridis

— Chief Diversity/Inclusion Officer Sonya Holt

Inspired choices, all. Let me explain.

/1

cbsnews.com/news/cia-direc…

I stand by what I said when the deputy director was first named: “Vaughn Bishop is the real deal, someone who knows the business and understands better than most the ethical limits, and responsibilities, of intelligence. This is a refreshing, promising choice.”

/2

As I’m quoted below saying about Andy’s COO role, "Among other things, the CIA is a massive bureaucracy. It's a crucial position to make sure that analysts and operators alike have the resources they need to fulfill evolving mission requirements."

/3
cbsnews.com/news/cia-direc…

Andy taught me much during one crucial year about integrity—and humor. I can’t best what former acting CIA chief @MichaelJMorell said of him: "one of the most talented intelligence officers with whom I worked ... smart but humble, tough but soft-spoken."

[this👇 is NOT Andy]

/4

And I know Sonya will be relentless in reinforcing, and expanding creatively on, recent CIA advances in diversity and inclusion—not only the right thing to do inherently, but also critical for the Agency’s mission.

/5

Selecting the wrong executives sends a horrible signal throughout an organization. This could have gone in a very different direction.

But I couldn’t be more pleased right now. It’s no exaggeration to say that Americans have rarely seen a stronger leadership team at CIA.

/end