CIA: Panetta Secure as Director

By Paul Bedard, Washington Whispers

The CIA is pushing back hard on insider rumors that Director Leon Panetta, in turf battles with Congress and the national intelligence director, is frustrated and thinking about leaving at his one-year mark in February. "That's complete garbage," spokesman Paul Gimigliano tells Whispers. "His place at the table's secure, and he hopes to be at the CIA for a good long time. You only leave a place like Monterey [in California] for something really good—and he did." Whatever Panetta decides, look for President Obama to press him to stay, if for no other reason than few others are eager to take the job.

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