Former CIA Director And DEfense Secretary Leon Panetta Says US Troops Will Need To Return To Combat In Afghanistan

 

Daily Mail: 'We're going to have to go back in': Obama's Defense Secretary Leon Panetta says US forces will have to RETURN to Afghanistan to tackle terror threats posed by Taliban and ISIS-K 

* Paneta, a Democrat, served as Defense Secretary in the Obama administration 

* He said in an interview with Erin Burnett that the withdrawal of American troops left the United States in a 'very dangerous and difficult situation' 

* He was asked if he believed it was right for the Biden administration to stick with the August 31 deadline for removing American troops from the war-torn country 

* 'We're going to have to go back in to get ISIS. We're probably going to have to go back in when Al Qaeda resurrects itself, as they will, with this Taliban,' he said 

Leon Panetta said on Thursday that the Unites States military will have to return to Afghanistan to tackle terror threats posed by Taliban and ISIS-K after a suicide attack killed 13 U.S. troops and at least 90 Afghans. 

Paneta, a Democrat who served as Defense Secretary in the Obama administration, said in an interview with Erin Burnett for her CNN show OutFront that the withdrawal of American troops left the United States in a 'very dangerous and difficult situation.' 

He was asked if he believed it was right for the Biden administration to stick with the August 31 deadline for removing American troops from the war-torn country. 

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Update #1: Leon Panetta says US troops will need to return to combat in Afghanistan (NYPost)  

Update #2: ‘We’ll have to go back to Afghanistan’ to get ISIS & Al-Qaeda, Obama’s security chief Panetta says after US deaths in Kabul (RT)  

WNU Editor: I do not see how the U.S. military can return to Afghanistan after this "evacuation" has been completed. Not one country that borders Afghanistan wants a U.S. presence when this is all over. So how can the U.S. military be deployed to Afghanistan?

Leon Panetta: "One Thing I've Learned At The CIA And As Secretary of Defense Is That The Iranians Can't Be Trusted"

WNU Editor: The above video is from Real Clear Politics. Leon Panettas' comments on Yemen and Iraq are also blunt (see video below).

Did Former CIA Director Panetta Violate His Secrecy Agreement With The CIA?

Former U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta discusses his book “Worthy Fights” at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 14, 2014. (Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)

Panetta Clashed With CIA Over Memoir, Tested Agency Review Process -- Washington Post

Former CIA director Leon E. Panetta clashed with the agency over the contents of his recently published memoir and allowed his publisher to begin editing and making copies of the book before he had received final approval from the CIA, according to former U.S. officials and others familiar with the project.

Panetta’s decision appears to have put him in violation of the secrecy agreement that all CIA employees are required to sign and came amid a showdown with agency reviewers that could have derailed the release of the book this month, people involved in the matter said.

The memoir, which is almost unfailingly complimentary toward the spy service, which he led from 2009 to 2011, was ultimately approved by the CIA’s Publications Review Board before it reached store shelves.

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My Comment: Rules for you but not for me.

US War Plans Against North Korea Recently Included The Option Of A Nuclear Strike.

U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta speaks during a joint news conference with South Korean Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin in Seoul October 28, 2011. Jung Yeon-je/Pool/Reuters

Panetta Sparks Debate Over U.S. Nuclear Strike on North Korea -- Newsweek

The specter of nuclear mushroom clouds rising over northeast Asia has long been a staple of nightmare scenarios in the event of another war between North and South Korea. It’s a prospect so apocalyptic that American officials have rarely articulated exactly what would trigger their use of weapons that could instantly kill millions and make the entire peninsula uninhabitable for decades.

In a memoir published last week, however, former CIA chief and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta reopened the prickly issue, recalling a chilling, 2010 briefing in Seoul by General Walter L. “Skip” Sharp, the commander of U.S. forces in South Korea, who told him just such a nightmare could come true should communist forces pour across the DMZ as they did in 1950.

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Update: Panetta reveals US nuke strike plans on N. Korea, spurs controversy -- RT

My Comment:I  am not surprised that all options are on the table when it comes to a scenario of war on the Korean peninsula. The issue has always been .... will the U.S. President issue the order to have these weapons uses. If the case of President Obama .... I doubt it.

Top 10 Revelations From Leon Panetta's New Book

Top 10 Revelations From Leon Panetta's New Book 'Worthy Fights' -- Anna Mulrine, CSM

Former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta tackles some major policy debates in his new book, “Worthy Fights: a Memoir of Leadership in War and Peace,” out Tuesday.

These include whether President Obama pushed hard enough to leave US troops in Iraq back in 2011 (Mr. Panetta doesn’t think so) to whether the White House tried to cover up the circumstances surrounding the death of a US ambassador in Benghazi, Libya. (No, but Panetta disagreed with the intelligence assessments of then-CIA director David Petraeus.)

Here are the top 10 revelations – some more surprising than others – from the book.

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My Comment: There are a few gems here (i.e. getting a brick from Bin Laden's home is a unique souvenir) ... so check it out.

Former CIA Director And U.S. Secretary Of Defense Leon Panetta: Obama 'Lost His Way'. Predicts A 30 Year Against The Islamic State

Panetta: '30-Year War' And A Leadership Test For Obama -- USA Today

CARMEL VALLEY, Calif. — Americans should be braced for a long battle against the brutal terrorist group Islamic State that will test U.S. resolve — and the leadership of the commander in chief, says Leon Panetta, who headed the CIA and then the Pentagon as Al Qaeda was weakened and Osama bin Laden killed.

"I think we're looking at kind of a 30-year war," he says, one that will have to extend beyond Islamic State to include emerging threats in Nigeria, Somalia, Yemen, Libya and elsewhere.

In his first interview about his new book, Worthy Fights: A Memoir of Leadership in War and Peace, Panetta argues that decisions made by President Obama over the past three years have made that battle more difficult — an explosive assessment by a respected policymaker of the president he served.

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More News On Leon Panetta's Prediction Of A 30 Year War Against The Islamic State

Barack Obama’s Iraq policy allowed ISIS ‘to breed,’ former U.S. defense secretary says in stinging criticism -- National Post/Washington Post
Panetta blames Obama, sees 30-year terror war -- Arab News/AFP
Containing IS threat tough task, could take 30 years: Panetta -- Oman Tribune/AFP
Former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta warns America faces a '30-year war' against ISIS and other emerging terror groups -- Daily Mail
Ex-Pentagon chief predicts 30-year ISIS war -- Al Arabiya
Ex-Pentagon chief: War against ‘Islamic State’ could last decades -- Middle East Online
Panetta slams Obama on ISIS response -- The Hill
Panetta: Obama Shouldn't Rule Out Ground Troops in '30 Year War' Against Islamic State -- Breitbart
Former CIA chief: US could battle ISIL for 30 years -- Kuwait News Agency
Ex-Pentagon chief predicts 30-yr IS war -- Free Press Journal
In Book, Panetta Recounts Frustration With Obama -- New York Times
Get Ready for a 30 Year War with ISIS, Says Former CIA and Pentagon Head -- Politix
Leon Panetta: It's one thing for a president to talk, another to deliver -- CBS

The White House responds to Leon Panetta's criticisms:

White House rejects Panetta critique of Obama -- AFP
Spokesman defends Obama against Panetta book -- USA Today
Panetta's jabs at Obama are not 'legitimate,' White House says -- The Hill

Former CIA Director And U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta: Faults White House For Pulling US Forces Out Of Iraq

Leon Panetta Says Obama Administration Brushed Aside Push For Troops To Stay Behind In Iraq Because It Was 'Eager To Rid Itself Of' The War -- Daily Mail

* Leon Panetta, who ran the CIA and the Defense Department for Obama, argued for a 'residual force' to stay behind in Iraq to stabilize the country
* The White House, he writes in a new book, fell down on the job and didn't negotiate a security agreement with the al-Maliki government in Baghdad
* Obama has said it was Iraq, not the US, that scuttled any chance for American troops to stay past 2011
* The power vacuum left when Obama ordered servicemen and women home has been filled by ISIS and other al-Qaeda offshoots
* Panetta said two weeks ago that Obama ignored his advice to arm Syria's moderate rebel groups in 2012 – a move that the president now embraces

A former high-ranking Obama administration official writes in his forthcoming memoir that the White House was 'so eager to rid itself of Iraq' that advisers steered the president toward withdrawing all U.S troops instead of trying to ink an agreement to let them legally stay past 2011.

Leon Panetta, Obama's first CIA director and his second Defense secretary, writes in the book 'Worthy Fights: A Memoir of Leadership in War and Peace' that Obama's inner circle lacked a sense of urgency about finalizing a deal with Iraq's then-Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

'To my frustration,' Panetta writes, 'the White House coordinated the negotiations but never really led them,' leaving the Defense and State Departments to proceed 'without the President’s active advocacy.'

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More News On Former CIA Director And U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta Faulting the White House For Pulling US Forces Out Of Iraq

Panetta: Obama Vacillated on Syria -- ABC News/AP
Fmr. Defense Secretary blames Obama for ignoring his advice in Iraq -- CNN
Leon Panetta criticizes Obama for Iraq withdrawal -- CBS
Panetta Faults White House on Iraq Troop Presence -- WSJ
Panetta: WH ‘never really led' in Iraq troop talks -- The Hill
Panetta unloads on White House for pulling US forces out of Iraq -- FOX News
Panetta: Obama, White House Responsible For Chaos In Iraq -- Washington Examiner
Panetta: We should have left troops in Iraq -- USA Today
Panetta accuses Obama of rushing retreat from Iraq at all costs -- RT
Why Panetta’s Lament Is Newsworthy -- Seth Mandel, Commentary
Obama’s Ex-CIA Chief Slams White House for ‘Hesitation and Half Steps’ -- Josh Rogin, Daily Beast
Leon Panetta blows whistle on lies about Iraq -- Jennifer Rubin, Washington Post

WNU Editor: Leon Panetta's post on his opposition to the White House's plans for withdrawing from Iraq is here .... Leon Panetta: How the White House Misplayed Iraqi Troop Talks -- Leon Panetta, Time

Former Defense Secretary Panetta Has Regrets That The U.S. Did Not Keep Troops In Iraq

Former Defense Secretary: U.S. Should Have Kept Troops In Iraq -- Time

Panetta's expressed differences with his former boss, President Obama, in an interview with "60 Minutes"

Former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta says the United States should not have completely pulled troops out of Iraq in 2011.

In an interview on CBS’s 60 Minutes, Panetta, who was defense secretary under President Barack Obama from 2011 to 2013 after being director of the CIA from 2009 to 2011, said he disagreed with the U.S. strategy of withdrawing soldiers from Iraq.

“I really thought that it was important for us to maintain a presence in Iraq,” Panetta said.

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Update: Stunning: ex-SecDef Panetta on Obama's pullout from Iraq (American Thinker)

My Comment: We may have regrets now .... but  I do member the debate 3 -4 years ago .... and there was no public or political support for U.S. troops remaining in Iraq.

Former U.S. Secretary Of Defense Panetta Regrets That The U.S. Did Not Arm Syria's Moderate Rebels In 2012

Former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta Says Obama Helped ISIS Grow By Ignoring National Security Team's Advice To Arm Syrian Rebels -- Daily Mail

* Panetta said 'we pay the price' because Obama decided to overrule his secretary of state, CIA director and chairman of the Joint Chiefs
* Asked if Obama made a mistake by refusing to arm moderate Syrian rebels early on, Panetta said 'that would've helped'
* He also clashed with Obama's Iraq policy, saying that leaving some troops behind 'would've given us greater leverage over Iraq's government
* In August Hillary Clinton said it was a 'failure' to leave Syria's rebels to fend for themselves, and 'left a big vacuum, which the jihadists have now filled'
* Bill Clinton now says 'it was an argument she lost within the administration'

Former Obama administration Pentagon chief Leon Panetta said Sunday that the president overruled nearly his entire national security team and decided not to arm moderate Syrian rebel groups early on, a decision that helped the ISIS terror army gain power.

Panetta also said he favored leaving a residual force of U.S. troops behind in Iraq instead of withdrawing them, another opinion Obama ignored.

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More News On Former U.S. Secretary Of Defense Panetta Regrets That The U.S. Did Not Arm Syria's Moderate Rebels In 2012

The Islamic State: Repercussions -- CBS
Panetta: US paying the price for not arming Syrian rebels -- The Hill
Ex-Pentagon chief says US 'too late on Syria' -- SKY News
Panetta says US paying the price for not arming Syrian rebels -- FOX News
Panetta: ‘We Pay The Price’ For Obama Not Arming Rebels In 2012 -- Washington Free Beacon
Former Pentgon chief Leon Panetta says Barack Obama should have armed moderate Syrian rebels earlier -- News/com.au
U.S. too late on Syria, ex-Pentagon chief warns -- Al Arabiya
Panetta: Arming the FSA in 2012 might have prevented the rise of ISIS -- American Thinker

Former U.S. Defense Secretary Panetta: President Obama Overruled His National Security Team's Recommendations On Iraq

Former Defense Secretary: U.S. In Syria Too Late, Left Iraq Too Soon -- CBS

ISIS seized a third of Iraq that the U.S. secured with ten years of sacrifice. In an interview for 60 Minutes, Former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta said ISIS flourished because the U.S. got involved in Syria too late and left Iraq too soon. On the 47th season premiere Sunday, "60 Minutes" will report from Iraq and Syria on ISIS -- what it is, what it wants, and how to defeat it.

Pelley: Back when you watched the stars and stripes being lowered for the last time in Baghdad, were you confident in that moment that pulling out was the right thing to do?

Panetta: No, I wasn't. I really thought that it was important for us to maintain a presence in Iraq.

But the elected Prime Minister, Nouri Al-Maliki didn't want the U.S. force. As Iraq moved on, on its own, civil war broke out in Syria. The U.S. stayed largely on the sidelines but Panetta says the national security team urged the president to do more.

Read more ....

Update: Obama's Two Previous Defense Secretaries Are Criticizing His ISIS Policy -- Business Insider

WNU Editor: Leon Panetta's full interview will be broadcast on 60 Minutes this Sunday.

Former US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta: Military Force Against Iran May Have To Be Used

U.S. Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta holds a press conference after participating in two days of meetings with NATO defense ministers at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Feb. 22, 2013. DOD photo by Glenn Fawcett

Panetta: US May Have To Use Military Force Against Iran -- Jerusalem Post

NEW YORK -- Addressing the Anti-Defamation League's 100th annual meeting on Thursday night, former US secretary of defense and CIA director Leon Panetta told the ballroom of around 600 people that while the US has "implemented unprecedented sanctions and pressure on Iran, we may very well have to use military force to back up our policy."

US president Barack Obama has often said that "all options are on the table" when it comes to negotiating over Iran's nuclear program. Panetta, who was receiving the ADL's William and Naomi Gorowitz Institute Service Award, said the US needs to "maintain a healthy skepticism" when negotiating to suss out Iran's true level of commitment to the process.

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My Comment: Former Vice president Cheney was saying the same thing last week.

Former Defense Chief Panetta: Cuts Have Damaged Military's Readiness

Leon Panetta: Military Readiness ‘Badly Damaged’ By Sequester -- Washington Times

Remember sequester cuts? In all the brouhaha on Capitol Hill about the fate of Obamacare, the fate of the budget and continuing resolutions and the fate of government’s day-to-day operations, the fallout from mandated cost-cuts has fallen under the radar — but former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta raised the specter on Sunday.

America's military “readiness has been badly damaged” by sequester cuts, he said, on “Meet the Press” on NBC.

While Navy SEALs and special forces are still prepared to take on critical missions, the military in general, and in “broader crises, such as the Middle East,” is facing dire straits.

Read more ....

More News On Former Defense Chief Panetta Remarks That Budget Cuts Have Damaged U.S. Military Readiness

Former Defense Chief Says Fiscal Standoff Is Hurting Military Readiness -- New York Times
Leon Panetta: Cuts have damaged military's readiness -- UPI
Panetta: Sequester Has ‘Badly Damaged’ U.S. Military Readiness -- Washington Free Beacon

Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta Makes First Comments On Petraeus' Affair

Panetta Makes First Comments On Petraeus' Affair -- CNN

The network pool traveling to Australia with Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta reports that Panetta commented for the first time about the resignation of CIA Director David Petraeus. The comments were given during a mid-flight press conference:

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE LEON PANETTA: “First, obviously, it was a very sad situation to have a distinguished career like that end in this manner. And my heart obviously goes out to him and his family, but I think he took the right step and I think its important when you’re director of the CIA with all the challenges that face you in that position, that personal integrity comes first and foremost.”

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More News On US Secretary of Defense Panetta On The Petraeus Scandal

Leon Panetta: Petraeus situation "very sad" -- CBS News
Panetta: Petraeus resignation was right call -- Stars and Stripes
Panetta: Petraeus Was 'Right' to Resign as CIA Chief -- Newsmax

My Comment: You can tell on his face (Panetta's) in the above video that this affair has struck him on a very personal level.

Panetta Jokes On The Not-So-Secret CIA Drone Program

U.S. Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta talks with staff members in a closed-door session after meeting with NATO defense ministers and representatives from non-NATO nations that contribute to the International Security Assistance Force to discuss Afghanistan operations during a summit at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Oct. 6, 2011. DOD photo by U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Jacob N. Bailey

Panetta Makes Cracks About Not-So-Secret CIA Drone Program -- Wall Street Journal

SIGONELLA NAVAL AIR STATION, Italy–The CIA’s unofficial, undeclared campaign of airstrikes by remotely piloted drones may be the single worst kept secret in the U.S. government.

The CIA does not publicly acknowledge the drone campaign, and nearly every federal official who discusses it adds the obligatory proviso that they are not discussing or disclosing classified information. But there is little doubt that drones are hovering over Pakistan, regularly attacking insurgents.

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Update #1: Panetta spills a little on secret CIA drones -- AP
Update #2: Panetta: loose lips on CIA’s not-so-secret secret -- Washington Post

My Comment: Something must have happened to him to make him feel giddy. This is something that is not a "joking" manner.

U.S. Defense Chief Leon Panetta's Second Office Is His Home

Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta responds to a question from an audience member at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif., Aug. 23, 2011. DOD photo by U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Jacob N. Bailey

Defense Chief Leon Panetta's Commute Raises Eyebrows -- L.A. Times

Some wonder how the Defense secretary can manage frequent weekend trips to his California home, but aides say he's never out of touch.

Reporting from Washington — Shortly after Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta took office July 1, he boarded a U.S. Air Force jet and flew home to California for a three-day weekend. He has flown home five weekends since then and has spent part of a two-week vacation there.

Aides say that unless he is required to stay in Washington or travel elsewhere, Panetta will spend most weekends and days off at his 12-acre walnut farm in scenic Carmel Valley, where he and his wife, Sylvia, make their home.

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My Comment: Welcome to the 21rst century where technology makes it possible to do some jobs anywhere .... as long as you have the communications infrastructure to back you up .... which I suspect Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta has. Case in point .... I do a lot of web work (including this blog), and in the past six months I have worked from my office and home in Montreal, my farm in the eastern townships of southern Quebec, my chalet up in the Laurentians of Quebec, at my friends winery in Napa California, Kiev in the Ukraine, St. Petersburg in Russia, Quanzhou in China, and finally .... Vancouver.

From CIA Director To U.S. Secretary Of Defense

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta talks to reporters from Stars and Stripes, Military Times, and American Forces Press Service in his Pentagon office, Friday, Aug. 19, 2011. DOD

Panetta Discusses Shift From Spy Chief To Caretaker -- Stars And Stripes

WASHINGTON – Once the nation’s spy chief, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is settling into his new role as caretaker of the world’s largest volunteer military force and their families, and facing down all of the challenges that come with the job.

“It’s a much bigger responsibility,” Panetta, the former CIA director, said in a recent interview in his Pentagon office.

But while some basic job descriptors are the same – defeat al-Qaida, protect the country – with the government ordering a massive budget-cutting season ahead, Panetta has a new responsibility: protect the military.

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My Comment: His primary focus will be cutting the Pentagon's budget. That is the emergency in Washington today (and tomorrow), and that is where his energies will be directed at.

This Is The Mindset Of The U.S. Secretary Of Defense

U.S. Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta speaks to U.S. Marines assigned to Combat Logistics Battalion-7 at Camp Dwyer, Afghanistan, July 10, 2011 DOD photo by U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Jacob N. Bailey

Paychecks Uncertain, Panetta Tells Military 'Come To Work' Monday -- Stars and Stripes

WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Leon Panetta broke his silence on the debt-ceiling debate that threatens the government’s ability to write paychecks to troops next week by reminding the entire Defense Department to show up for duty next week.

“Department of Defense personnel should plan to come to work next week, as scheduled, at their normal place and time,” Panetta said, in a message to the troops released late Friday.

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My Comment: Unbelievable .... if there is one thing that I know about American soldiers, it is that they did not join up for the pay. To insinuate that they will not show up for work because they will not get their paycheck .... hmmmm ..... Mr. Defense Secretary .... it appears that you do not really know who your soldiers are.

What you should have done is say that you will move 'heaven and earth' to make sure that the soldiers will be paid .... but you did not. Anyhow, this is all moot now. The debt deal has been made, and things will go back to normal until the next crisis.

The Wars That The New U.S. Secretary Of Defense Will Face

Panetta Must Fight Four Wars: Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Waste -- Boston.com editorial

WHEN LEON Panetta takes the helm at the Defense Department tomorrow, he will be facing difficult choices about the US military efforts in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya. But an equally pressing — and potentially even more intractable — problem is the Pentagon’s budget and spending. Outgoing secretary Robert Gates was good at paying lip service to the need to control spending; he noted recently that “the United States should spend as much as necessary on national defense, but not one penny more.’’ But the department’s baseline budget has risen every year since Gates took over — from $450 billion to more than $550 billion four years later. This year alone, the Pentagon is seeking a 3.4 percent increase from its 2010 budget.

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My Comment: Fighting Four wars!?!?!? I am counting six if you add this hot spot and this one. The war on terror is (also) another conflict .... but because of it's general nature, I am incorporating that conflict as "the general one".

Leon Panetta Confirmed As U.S. Secretary Of Defense

Leon E. Panetta appears before the Senate Armed Services Committee during confirmation hearings June 9, 2011.

Panetta Confirmed As Defense Secretary -- L.A. Times

In a 100-0 vote, the Senate backs the former CIA director, who will replace Robert M. Gates. The vote comes as President Obama prepares to announce a plan for reducing troops in Afghanistan.

The Senate unanimously confirmed Leon E. Panetta as secretary of Defense on Tuesday, putting the Pentagon in the hands of a former Democratic congressman and budget expert amid growing political discontent over the cost and reach of President Obama's military engagements.

Panetta, who spent two years as director of the Central Intelligence Agency, will replace Robert M. Gates, who is retiring after serving in two consecutive administrations.

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More News On Leon Panetta Being Confirmed As U.S. Secretary Of Defense

Senate confirms Panetta as Pentagon chief -- Yahoo News/Reuters
Senate approves Panetta as Pentagon chief -- Yahoo News/AP
Senate confirms Panetta to head Pentagon -- Yahoo News/AFP
Leon Panetta, CIA director, unanimously confirmed by Senate as defense secretary -- Washington Post
Senate OKs Panetta as Pentagon Chief -- Time/AP
100-to-0 Vote Puts Panetta in Top Post -- New York Times
Senate unanimously approves Panetta as new Defense chief -- the Hill
Leon Panetta confirmed by Senate as new Pentagon chief -- BBC
Senate Confirms Panetta as Defense Secretary -- Wall Street Journal
Leon Panetta clears Senate 100-0 -- Politico
CIA Director Panetta Gets Senate Nod as Next Defense Secretary -- Bloomberg
Senate confirms Panetta as defense chief -- UPI

US Defense Secretary Nominee Leon Panetta Testifies Before Senate Committee

Defense secretary nominee Leon Panetta testifies before the Senate Armed Services Committee Thursday. (Tim Young/Reuters)

Senate Panel Questions Leon Panetta On Troop Withdrawals From Afghanistan, Defense Budget Cuts -- Voice of America

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee has held a hearing on President Barack Obama's nominee to be the next U.S. Secretary of Defense, Leon Panetta. Panetta, the current Central Intelligence Agency Director, was warmly received by the panel, but faced a number of tough questions on his ideas about the size and pace of troop withdrawals from Afghanistan and plans by the president to cut the nation's defense budget.

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More News On Today's Testimony From US Defense Secretary Nominee Leon Panetta

Panetta faces no major hurdles to confirmation as Pentagon chief -- Washington
Panetta has tough talk for US foes, defines Afghanistan mission -- The Hill
Leon Panetta cites Afghanistan gains, continued terrorism threat in confirmation hearing -- L.A. Times

Defense Nominee Is Budget Warrior -- Wall Street Journal
Pentagon nominee Panetta promises fiscal discipline -- Reuters
Panetta Supports Cuts While Maintaining ‘Core Elements’ -- Bloomberg Businessweek
Panetta Backs Pentagon Cuts While Maintaining ‘Core Elements’ of Defense -- Blommberg
Budget cuts won't harm national security, Panetta says -- Federal Times
New US defence chief promises cuts -- Financial Times

Likely New Defense Secretary Says Afghanistan Drawdown Should be 'Modest' -- ABC News
Panetta Won't Specify Pace of Afghan Troop Drawdown -- Wall Street Journal
Panetta Demurs on Troop Drawdown in Afghanistan -- New York Times
Senators Spar Over Afghanistan Troop Drawdown as Transition Looms -- FOX News
Panetta backs significant Afghan drawdown -- AFP

Panetta: Iraq will ask for some US troops to stay -- AJC/AP
CIA chief expects Iraq to ask U.S. troops to stay -- Reuters
Obama Defense nominee believes Iraq will ask for continued U.S. presence -- MSNBC

Panetta: Cyberattacks among 'blizzard' of defense challenges -- USA Today
Panetta Vows to Put National Security, Troops First -- U.S. Department of Defense
North Korea’s Army Poses a ‘Growing, Direct’ Threat to U.S., Panetta Says -- Bloomberg
Panetta: Bin Laden's death offers best chance since 9/11 to defeat al-Qaeda -- USA Today
Panetta: 1,000 al Qaeda terrorists still in Iraq -- The Cable/Foreign Policy
Panetta’s Excellent Pentagon Adventure: Cut Cash, Rewrite Strategy -- Spencer Ackerman, Danger Room
Leon Panetta Does His Best Robert Gates Impression -- Spencer Ackerman, Danger Room
Panetta’s perspective -- DoD Buzz