May 2, 2007,

A recent public letter by six former CIA employees is a
bitter, inaccurate and misleading attack on Former CIA
Director George Tenet’s leadership and, ultimately, on the
CIA itself. That letter came from officers many of whom
had not served in the Agency for years and in some cases
decades. For the most part, these few individuals did not
bear the burdens of rebuilding an agency that had been
battered by resource cuts in the 1990s, battling terrorism
in the run-up to 9/11 and in its aftermath, or wrestling
with the complex problems associated with US involvement
in Iraq.

Their letter was written from the comfortable confines of
hindsight and from afar. We note they launched their
attack before any of them could have had an opportunity to
read Mr. Tenet’s book.

In contrast, what we saw during the seven years Mr. Tenet
was Director was a very different picture than the one
presented by these former officers.

We saw a Director who worked tirelessly and passionately
to restore, modernize, and enhance the nation’s intelligence
capabilities.

We saw a Director who cared deeply about the people of the
intelligence community about their welfare, their training,
their opportunities and about the diversity of the
intelligence workforce.

We saw a Director who understood before most other senior
officials in Washington the seriousness of the threat al
Qaeda and other terrorists represented and declared war on
them long before many in Washington were ready to fight.

We saw a Director who, after 9/11, literally led the nation’s
counterterrorism fight aggressively pushing, cajoling, and
demanding the best from everyone across the entire US
counterterrorism community.

We saw a director who was adamant that his intelligence
officers not become policy advocates; to do so would make
the objectivity and credibility of all intelligence suspect in
the eyes of the recipients. In short, he set an example of
what it takes to be a dedicated public servant and the
consummate intelligence professional.

And on Iraq, we saw a Director who did not shrink from
conveying bad news to policymakers when the war began
going badly, and who now has the courage to acknowledge
errors that were made and accept the responsibility that
belongs to him and the intelligence community he led.

None of us would argue that the CIA’s record or Mr. Tenet’s
is perfect. The CIA is a human institution; Mr. Tenet was
just one man directing the nation’s intelligence operations
during the most tumultuous period in recent history. But
the record is dramatically better than the above referenced
letter indicates.

Intelligence and the issues of recent years are too complex
to deal with in the emotional sound bites we’ve heard in
the last few days. We suggest that everyone take a deep
breath, read the book in its entirety, and weigh it
thoughtfully against all the other things that have been
written and said. It is doubtful that Mr. Tenet expected any
more than that in writing this account, but that thoughtful
debate has yet to begin.

Ambassador Cofer Black

John O. Brennan

Ambassador Henry A. Crumpton

Robert L. Grenier

The Honorable John E. McLaughlin

Robert Richer

___________________________________

Ambassador Cofer Black

Blackwater USA proudly announces that Ambassador
Cofer Black, former Coordinator for Counterterrorism at
the U. S. State Department, and former Director of the CIA’
s Counterterrorism Center has joined our team as Vice
Chairman.

As the Coordinator for Counterterrorism, Ambassador
Black’s office, S/CT, had primary responsibility for
developing, coordinating and implementing U.S.
counterterrorism policy. On behalf of the Secretary of
State, Ambassador Black represented the Department on
the Counterterrorism Security Group. His office played a
leading role on the Department of State’s counterterrorism
task forces organized to coordinate responses to
international terrorist incidents. Ambassador Black’s
responsibilities included coordinating U.S. Government
efforts to improve counterterrorism cooperation with
foreign governments, including the policy and planning of
the Department’s Antiterrorism Training Assistance
Program.

Ambassador Black has had a distinguished 28-year career
in the Directorate of Operations at the Central Intelligence
Agency. Prior to joining the State Department, Ambassador
Black was the Director of the CIA Counterterrorism
Center. In this capacity, he served as the CIA Director’s
Special Assistant for Counterterrorism as well as the
National Intelligence Officer for Counterterrorism.

Official Bio

John O. Brennan

Mr. Brennan was appointed President and CEO of The
Analysis Corporation (TAC) in McLean, VA in November
2005. Prior to joining TAC, Mr. Brennan had a
distinguished 25-year career with the Central Intelligence
Agency, serving in a variety of senior positions throughout
the Intelligence Community. His last assignment was
(interim) Director of the National Counterterrorism Center
(NCTC). Mr. Brennan was appointed to that position, with
the approval of the President, by the Director of Central
Intelligence in October 2004. He served as head of the
NCTC until August 2005. Mr. Brennan also served as the
Director of the Terrorist Threat Integration Center (TTIC)
from 12 March 2003 until 6 December 2004. When the
NCTC was formally launched in December 2004, all
functions and responsibilities of the TTIC were transferred
to the NCTC.

Official Bio

Ambassador Henry A. Crumpton

Henry A. Crumpton was sworn in as Coordinator for
Counterterrorism at the Department of State with the rank
of Ambassador-at-Large on August 2, 2005. Ambassador
Crumpton joined the Central Intelligence Agency in 1981
and served as an operations officer both at headquarters
and abroad. He has served in several foreign field
assignments, two as Chief of Station. In Washington,
Ambassador Crumpton held senior management positions,
including a one-year assignment at the Federal Bureau of
Investigation as Deputy Chief of the International
Terrorism Operations Section, 1998-1999. Ambassador
Crumpton was also Deputy Chief (Operations) of the CIA’s
Counterterrorist Center, 1999-2001, and led the CIA’s
Afghan campaign, 2001-2002. Ambassador Crumpton
served as Chief of National Resources Division from
August 2003 until June 2005.

State Department Bio

Robert L. Grenier

Robert L. Grenier is a managing director with wide-
ranging responsibilities in the firm. Following a 27-year
career with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Bob has
exceptional experience in global intelligence, security,
foreign affairs, and strategic and covert operations.
Throughout his career Bob has worked with all levels of
government, from representing the CIA at the White House
with the most senior officials responsible for national
security to service in remote areas in Third World
countries.

Bob joined the CIA in January 1979 as a Career Trainee
and was assigned to the Near East and South Asia
Division. He spent 14 years in overseas field assignments
for this division, including multiple tours as Chief of Base
and Chief of Station, most recently in Islamabad, Pakistan.
His tenure with the CIA included assignments as the
Deputy National Intelligence Officer for Near East and
South Asia on the National Intelligence Council and as a
Special Assistant for Near East and South Asia to the
Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs. Bob was
instrumental in organizing the CIA’s Counter-Proliferation
Division, and served as its first Chief of Operations. He
served extensively in Pakistan before and following the
attacks of 9/11, and for two years was the CIA’s
representative to the White House on Iraq. His most recent
position was Director of the Counter Terrorism Center
(CTC), where he led the CIA’s involvement in the Global
War on Terror.

Official Bio

John E. McLaughlin

* Deputy Director and Acting Director of Central
Intelligence, 2000-2004
* Senior Fellow, Johns Hopkins University, School of
Advanced International Studies
* National Security Advisor, Cable News Network (CNN)

John E. McLaughlin is currently a Senior Fellow at the
Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies
(SAIS) of the Johns Hopkins University. Over a three
decade career with the CIA, Mr. McLaughlin has worked
on nearly every part of the world, frequently briefed the
President and the Congress, represented the intelligence
community in meetings of the National Security Council,
and traveled widely to strengthen U.S. relations with
national security counterparts in numerous countries. He
continues to testify in Congress and to participate in public
policy debates through Op-Eds in major newspapers and
commentary on CNN.

Extended Bio

Robert Richer

Mr. Richer became Total Intelligence Solution’s first Chief
Executive Officer with the formation of the company in
January 2007. He came to lead Total Intel from duties as
Blackwater USA’s Vice-President for Intelligence. Mr.
Richer retired in November 2005 from the Central
Intelligence Agency as the Associate Deputy Director for
Operations (ADDO). As the ADDO, Mr. Richer was
responsible for leading the Clandestine Services’ worldwide
collection and operational efforts with specific focus on
national security priorities and threats. He brought to that
position more than twenty years service focused on
national collection and operational priorities, the Middle
East and the war against terrorism. During his years of
service he developed unique relationships with key foreign
officials and leaders; particularly in the Middle East and
South Asia.

Prior to his assignment as the ADDO in 2004, Mr. Richer
was the Chief of the Near East and South Asia Division,
responsible for Clandestine Service Operations throughout
the Middle East and South Asia. In that leadership role,
Mr. Richer directed the Clandestine Service’s roles in the
prosecution of the war in Iraq, reinforced critical
relationships with foreign governments and intelligence
services on issues of national importance throughout the
Middle East and South Asia, and participated in national
security policy deliberations.
GEORGE J. TENET
Facts From and About the Former
Director of Central Intelligence
Open Letter from Six Former Senior CIA Officers
Regarding Tenet Book