With the resignation of George Tenet as director of central intelligence and the final hearings of the 9/11 commission this week, the stage is set for the first major restructuring of the intelligence community in decades.
Back in Washington, he became involved in the great post-war restructuring of American intelligence.
The panel, whose own report about the prewar intelligence on Iraq delivered a scathing indictment of American intelligence agencies, has vowed to consider the question of intelligence restructuring.
The commission is also calling for a restructuring of Congressional oversight of intelligence issues, including greater authority for the House and Senate intelligence committees.
Most proponents of restructuring intelligence agencies argue that the country's primary intelligence chief needs more power, not less, to control budgets, resolve disputes, avoid overlap and fill gaps among the many intelligence agencies.
Following the Journal's report, incoming White House press secretary Sean Spicer immediately refuted the claim, telling Politico, "There is no truth to this idea of restructuring the intelligence community infrastructure..
Since the release of the report warning that without a historic restructuring of the nation's intelligence agencies the United States would leave itself open to catastrophic attack, Mr. Kerry has seized on it at every opportunity.
It warned that without a historic restructuring of the nation's intelligence agencies and a new emphasis on diplomacy, the United States would leave itself open to an even more catastrophic attack.
Some involved in the talks said they did not expect any decision to be made until next month, when the presidential commission on the Sept. 11 attacks is to deliver a final report that is expected to recommend a sweeping restructuring of the country's intelligence agencies.
