INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Authors: JordanIn 2002, Haspel oversaw a CIA detention facility in Thailand, where one al-Qaida suspect was waterboardedWashington:
Gina Haspel, President Donald Trump's nominee to become the next CIA director, sought to withdraw her nomination Friday
after some White House officials worried that her role in the interrogation of terrorist suspects could prevent her confirmation by the
Senate, according to four senior U.S
officials.Haspel told the White House she was interested in stepping aside if it avoided the spectacle of a brutal confirmation hearing on
Wednesday and potential damage to the CIA's reputation and her own, the officials said
She was summoned to the White House on Friday for a meeting on her history in the CIA's controversial interrogation program - which employed
techniques such as waterboarding that are widely seen as torture - and signaled that she was going to withdraw her nomination
She then returned to CIA headquarters, the officials said.Taken aback at her stance, senior White House aides, including legislative affairs
head Marc Short and press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, rushed to Langley, Virginia, to meet with Haspel at her office late Friday
Discussions stretched several hours, officials said, and the White House was not entirely sure she would stick with her nomination until
Saturday afternoon, according to the officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.Trump learned of
the drama Friday, calling officials from his trip to Dallas
He decided to push for Haspel to remain as the nominee after initially signaling he would support whatever decision was taken,
administration officials said.Haspel, who serves as the CIA's deputy director and has spent 33 years in the agency, most of it undercover,
faces some opposition in Congress because of her connection to the interrogation program, which was set up after the Sept
11, 2001, attacks.In late 2002, Haspel oversaw a secret CIA detention facility in Thailand, where one al-Qaida suspect was waterboarded
Another detainee also was waterboarded before Haspel's arrival.Three years later, Haspel was involved in the CIA's destruction of nearly 100
videotapes that recorded the men's interrogations, touching off an investigation by a special prosecutor who ultimately decided not to bring
charges against those involved."There has been a fascinating phenomenon over the last few weeks
Those who know the true Gina Haspel - who worked with her, who served with her, who helped her confront terrorism, Russia and countless
other threats to our nation - they almost uniformly support her," said Ryan Trapani, a CIA spokesman
"That is true for people who disagree about nearly everything else
There is a reason for that
When the American people finally have a chance to see the true Gina Haspel on Wednesday, they will understand why she is so admired and why
she is and will be a great leader for this agency."Sanders declined to comment on Haspel's offer to withdraw or internal White House
discussions, but she stressed that Haspel is a dedicated public servant qualified for the role and that she has the full support of the
president."She is the best of the best," Sanders said of Haspel, describing her as a "patriot."An administration official said the
nomination remains on track
"There is a hearing prep session today, courtesy calls with senators Monday and Tuesday, and classified materials will be delivered to
Senate security so senators can read the real record instead of relying on gossip and unfounded smears," the official said.But Haspel's
nomination to become the first woman to lead the CIA came close to being scuttled Friday ahead of any hearings - and largely at her own
The problem came to a head Friday afternoon when she was summoned to the White House for some urgent questions, particularly on her role in
the use of waterboarding and other harsh interrogation techniques.She had been in a meeting with her staff at CIA headquarters in Langley,
fielding mock questions to prepare for her confirmation hearing, when the summons arrived.Some White House officials were concerned by
material being raised in questions from Congress, information they were just learning about, according to the U.S
Those officials said the material was not new, but the White House wanted to hear Haspel's explanation of it.Some records from the
interrogation program, including documents that haven't been made public, show that Haspel was an enthusiastic supporter of what the CIA was
doing, according to officials familiar with the matter
But others have disputed any characterization of Haspel as some kind of cheerleader of the harsh treatment of detainees and noted that the
program was authorized by the president, deemed legal by administration lawyers and briefed to members of Congress.Haspel's chances of
winning Senate confirmation are considered uncertain, in part because of the 51-to-49 party split and the prolonged absence of Sen
John McCain, R-Ariz., who is undergoing treatment for a rare form of brain cancer
Members of Congress, particularly Democrats, have been resistant to Haspel's nomination without more information about her role in the
The nomination has sparked trepidation inside the White House, with some Trump advisers telling the president in recent weeks she was
unlikely to be confirmed.Lawmakers had been pushing last month for more access to a handful of cables and other CIA material that might shed
more light on Haspel's work
Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said the more material she reads about Haspel's role in the interrogation program, including the destruction of
tapes, the more unsettled she has become.Last month, the CIA declassified an internal disciplinary review that "found no fault with the
performance" of Haspel in the destruction of the videotapes
Haspel drafted a cable approving the destruction that her boss ultimately sent to field officers, who fed the tapes into a shredding machine
But she believed that he would first get the approval of senior CIA leaders before sending it, according to people with knowledge of the
episode.The release of the disciplinary review may persuade some lawmakers who had been undecided to support Haspel, said congressional
officials tracking the nomination process.Amid the questioning in the West Wing on Friday afternoon, Haspel told White House aides she did
not want her nomination to harm the CIA
She also feared unfair attacks on her own reputation, saying that she didn't want to be "the next Ronny Jackson," one official said
Jackson, Trump's White House doctor, withdrew his nomination to become Veterans Affairs secretary following questions regarding alleged
misconduct earlier in his career.Short, the White House legislative affairs director, told Haspel she could still be confirmed despite the
information that had recently come to attention of the White House - and the administration expected some Democrats to support her,
officials said.Short declined to comment.By Saturday, the officials said, Haspel had agreed to continue with her nomination.Sanders issued a
tweet in support of Haspel and rebuking her detractors on Capitol Hill late Saturday afternoon."There is no one more qualified to be the
first woman to lead the CIA than 30+ year CIA veteran Gina Haspel," she tweeted
"Any Democrat who claims to support women's empowerment and our national security but opposes her nomination is a total hypocrite."(Except
for the headline, this story has not been edited by TheIndianSubcontinent staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
