CNN.com - Senators press CIA nominee on independence

Sen. Trent Lott, left, and Gen. Michael Hayden chat on Capitol Hill on Wednesday.

GEN. MICHAEL HAYDEN

Top intelligence assignments

Deputy director of national intelligence, April 2005-present

Director of the National Security Agency and chief of the Central Security Service, March 1999 to April 2005

Deputy chief of staff, U.N. Command and U.S. Forces Korea, September 1997 to March 1999

Commander, Air Intelligence Agency, and director, Joint Command and Control Warfare Center, January 1996 to September 1997

Source: U.S. Air Force

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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Key senators pressed Michael Hayden on Wednesday about whether he would operate as an independent CIA director despite his active status as an Air Force four-star general.

Hayden needs Senate approval to take the top CIA post, and he met privately with Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Illinois, who said Hayden was considering calls by members of Congress for him to leave the military.

"He stressed his concern that he wanted to have the strongest working relationship with the men and women of the CIA, and his decision to continue in a military capacity depended to a great extent on that," Durbin, the Democrats' No. 2 man in the Senate, said. (Watch pressing issues await next director -- 1:59)

President Bush on Monday nominated Hayden, 61, currently deputy director of national intelligence, to replace Porter Goss, who announced his resignation last week. (Full story)

Hayden also met with Republican Sen. Trent Lott of Mississippi, a member of the powerful Senate Intelligence Committee, who downplayed the issue.

"Who are you going to be fooling? I mean, one day he's a four-star general and the next day he doesn't show up in his uniform and now he's a civilian and there is no problem there?" Lott said. "It's superficial, in a way."

But, Lott said, "I am of those who want to make sure that having a uniformed general at the CIA does not mean that he is taking orders from the secretary of defense."

Lott predicted Hayden would be confirmed, but expressed concern that reform of the intelligence community continues, including a renewed CIA focus on human intelligence.

The chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Republican Sen. Pat Roberts of Kansas, said open and closed hearings will start May 18.

During their meeting, Durbin said he expressed concern that Hayden he would "give an independent judgment on important issues about American security."

Durbin said Hayden gave assurances that he would act independently of the Pentagon. To bolster his case, Hayden cited disagreements he had with Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld when the intelligence reform act was debated in Congress, Durbin said.

Durbin also said he pressed Hayden on the Bush administration's program to monitor domestic communication by suspected terrorists into the United States without court warrants.

The president authorized the controversial program when Hayden headed the super-secret National Security Agency in 2001.

"The general did say ... that because of the publicity in this program we may be closer to the day when we can talk about changes in [the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act] as a way to accommodate this program," Durbin said.

FISA requires warrants by a special court for domestic wiretaps by the FBI or NSA.

CIA No. 2 job offered

Steve Kappes, a recently retired CIA insider, has been offered the No. 2 slot at the spy agency, sources told CNN, to reassure the CIA operations community about Hayden's appointment and to ease concerns about his military status.

Kappes was a civilian operations officer who reportedly was forced out of the CIA by Goss' associates after Goss became director in 2004.

Intelligence analysts and former intelligence officials said that Kappes' selection is a repudiation of Goss, who abruptly announced his resignation Friday after reported disagreements with National Intelligence Director John Negroponte, Goss' superior.

Suggestions of resigning post

On Tuesday, Hayden made courtesy calls on other intelligence committee members, including Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-California, and Carl Levin, D-Michigan.

As he headed to meet with Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, Hayden was asked about suggestions by some committee members that he resign his military post. "I can understand their concerns," Hayden said.

Later, when asked if his discussions had included talk about him leaving the military, Hayden said, "It's been brought up. We've talked about it -- pros and cons."

Feinstein said that if Hayden resigned his post, "I think that would be a good way to go. I think that would take care of that issue."

Rumsfeld: 'No power play'

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on Tuesday blasted the "quality of the debate" on Hayden's nomination, saying, "There is no power play taking place in Washington."

Some critics have cast the choice as a turf war, with the Pentagon trying to gain more control over intelligence-gathering.

"If you look at the debate and articles in the newspaper and comments that are being made, they are about theoretical conspiracies, theoretical bureaucratic turf fights. They're all off the mark," Rumsfeld said at a news conference.