Bolton's Pressure on C.I.A. Analyst Angered Colleagues
By DOUGLAS JEHL
Published: April 16, 2005
WASHINGTON, April 15 - An attempt in 2002 by John R. Bolton to remove the national intelligence officer for Latin America from his post prompted John E. McLaughlin, the deputy director of central intelligence, to intervene against the request, according to current and former intelligence officials.
Mr. McLaughlin's previously undisclosed role is being reviewed by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee as it considers the nomination of Mr. Bolton to be ambassador to the United Nations. In testimony last week, Mr. Bolton acknowledged that he had sought to have the intelligence officer, Fulton T. Armstrong, reassigned.
The incident is one of at least three being reviewed by the committee in which Mr. Bolton sought the removal of subordinates or intelligence officials during his time as an under secretary of state. Senate Democrats who oppose Mr. Bolton's nomination intend to highlight the infighting as an indication that Mr. Bolton's actions toward subordinates were inappropriate enough to require action by other senior officials.
In his Senate testimony, Mr. Bolton described his request for Mr. Armstrong's transfer, made during a visit to Stuart A. Cohen, then the acting chairman of the National Intelligence Council, in July 2002, as "one part of one conversation with one person one time." He said he had acted because he had lost confidence in Mr. Armstrong and had not been satisfied with his performance on several intelligence matters.
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