Avoiding Duck Lameness.

President Bush has and is continuing to transform his inner circle of advisors. I believe it is an effort to revamp his 2nd term performance and perceived lack of performance, to change tempo and get things done. It has to bother President Bush to stagnate, and that is exactly what has been going on in the White House for the last year or more...

This very well-written and informative Army Times article, which I won't quote because I'd end up quoting the entire thing, explains the changes taking place in the Defense Dept.

As per intelligence, another military man, Ret. Vice Admiral Mike McConnell, will replace John Negroponte as directer of national intelligence.

From the Baltimore Sun:

McConnell, a former National Security Agency director who spent a quarter-century in the military, primarily in intelligence, would be the first career intelligence officer in 14 years to lead the nation's intelligence agencies. Bush announced yesterday that he intends to nominate McConnell, who must be confirmed by the Senate.

The last career intelligence professional to head up the intelligence agencies was Robert M. Gates, who served as director of central intelligence from 1991 to 1993 and who recently became defense secretary. McConnell's selection caps a series of recent appointments of career intelligence officers to major U.S. spy and defense posts...

This can be very good. You might consider McConnell a technocrat, rather than a political appointee, easing the minds of the subordinate CIA. Remember back when Bush nominated Porter Goss to head the CIA? He was "too political."

But then again, Bush now has probably the most military men running the show than any other president, pushing the American tradition of civilian control to the limit.

The next year and a half will be interesting.