Thread by @CIA

Gina Haspel joined CIA in the waning days of the Cold War & for the past three decades she has quietly devoted herself to serving on the front lines of our mission.

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Gina, born in Ashland, KY, was oldest of 5 children. Her father served in @usairforce & after growing up overseas, she went to @universityofky, studying language & majoring in journalism. She moved to Louisville her senior year for an internship & graduated from @uofl w honors.

Her parents instilled a deep love of country & a commitment to public service. In high school, Gina came home & told her dad she wanted to attend @WestPoint_USMA. Her dad had to tell her they didn’t admit women at the time.

The pull of service & adventure, however, stayed w her.

After college, Gina worked at Ft. Devens running the library & foreign language lab. Soldiers (including Mike Vickers, future USD for Intel), mentioned CIA to her.

She came to understand that CIA was a place where women could serve doing clandestine work around the world.

DDCIA: "I wanted to be part of something bigger than just me. I think with my dad's service in the military, I saw that as a natural affinity. I wanted an overseas adventure where I could put my love of foreign languages to use. CIA delivered."

Haspel’s first overseas assignment was as a case officer in Africa. "It was right out of a spy novel. It really didn't get any better than that." She arrived during the closing days of the Cold War and had a front-row seat as the struggle played out.

Haspel recalls the initial shock of witnessing grinding poverty & the excitement of carrying out a clandestine mission amid billboards plastered with Marxist-Leninist slogans. She traveled the region, learned to recruit & handle agents, & survived a coup d'etat along the way.

Later, Gian's facility with languages landed her a job overseas during the first Gulf War, where she worked on humanitarian issues with other government partners.

Haspel’s first posting as a Chief of Station soon followed in an exotic & tumultuous capital.

The skepticism of some of her male colleagues was obvious, w comments like, "I can't believe they're sending you to a place like that."

She quickly proved doubters wrong.

One night, Ms. Haspel received word 2 terrorists linked to an embassy bombing, were coming to the country where she was stationed. She swiftly put together an operation that lead to the terrorists' arrest & imprisonment.

In addition to the arrests, her operation also culminated with the seizure of computers that carried details of a terrorist plot.

For her work, Haspel received the George H.W. Bush Award for Excellence in Counterterrorism.

As the fight against al-Qa'ida heated up, Gina requested transfer to our Counter Terrorism Center

Her first day on the job was September 11, 2001

She walked in amid the commotion, sat down at a computer, & got to work. She didn't let up for 3 years, often working 7 days a week

Before being named CIA Deputy Director in 2017, Haspel held a series of senior jobs, including Chief of Staff to Deputy Director for Operations, Chief of Station in city of a major US ally, & Deputy Director of DO.

She leads w compassion, integrity, discipline, & humor.

Haspel is a DO veteran, but her assignments over 3 decades have brought her into close partnerships w officers across CIA.

"Getting to work with these officers is the greatest part of the job," she says. "They are the silent warriors who work ceaselessly to protect America."

As the first woman to rise from the ranks to Deputy Director—& now the first to be nominated as CIA Director— Haspel says she owes her success to the colleagues she has served with, the mentors, role models, and close friends who supported & believed in her throughout her career.