President-Elect Obama Completes His National Security Team

U.S. President-elect Barack Obama (C) is joined by his appointees for CIA Director, former Clinton administration White House chief of staff Leon Panetta (L), and National Intelligence Director, retired U.S. Navy Admiral Dennis Blair, at a news conference at his transition office in Washington January 9, 2009. REUTERS/Jim Young (UNITED STATES)

From Yahoo News/AP:

WASHINGTON – President-elect Barack Obama is completing his national security team by announcing his unusual choices for CIA director and a national intelligence director who may face tough Senate confirmation questioning over how he confronted the Indonesian military when civilian massacres were occurring in East Timor.

Obama is also expected to announce that former National Counterterrorism Center Director John Brennan will be his top terrorism adviser on the National Security Council.

Obama was to introduce the men Friday, four days after their names leaked to reporters. That gave official Washington time to vent its surprise that Leon Panetta, a former White House chief of staff with no direct intelligence experience, had been tapped to head the CIA.

Read more ....

More News On President Obama's National Security Team

Obama names nation's new spymasters, vows no torture -- AFP
Obama Names Blair, Panetta to Top Intelligence Posts -- Bloomberg
Obama Names His National Intelligence Team -- CQ Politics
Obama formally announces intelligence team -- The Guardian
Obama Picks CIA Veteran Brennan as Counterterror Adviser -- Washington Post
Obama Selects 4 More Senior Defense Officials -- Washington Post
Obama team announces senior DoD posts -- Foreign Policy Blog
Kudos to Obama on new Pentagon general counsel pick -- Foreign Policy Blog
Defense Subcabinet Taking Shape -- Yglesias
More Pentagon Bigs Sticking Around -- The Danger Room
FACTBOX: Obama names intelligence leadership team -- Reuters
A Difficult Road Awaits Panetta at the C.I.A. -- New York Times
The New Intelligence Regime: No Biased Intel, No Torture, ‘No Exceptions’ -- Washington Independent
Surprise at the CIA -- Washington Times opinion
Is Panetta the Right Man for the Job? -- Philip Klein, The American Spectator
The Case for Panetta -- Robert Baer, The New Republic