David B. Buckley was sworn in late last week as the CIAâs new inspector general.
Upon his confirmation by the Senate last Friday, CIA Director Leon Panetta praised President Barack Obamaâs pick and the CIA internal watchdog position itself.
A robust, independent inspector general is essential to our success as an agency,â Panetta said. âIt is also vital to preserving the trust and support of our oversight committees in Congress, and, by extension, the American people.â
All told, Buckley has more than 30 years of service across the military and intelligence fields, as well as investigation and oversight positions. Buckley was previously the Democratic staff director for the House intelligence committee, Wired reports, as well as chief investigator for the Senateâs permanent committee on investigations.
Most recently, he was a senior manager at Deloitte Consulting.
Buckley may prove he is no stranger to internal wrangling at the secretive intelligence agency; he also worked as an inspector at the Federal Treasury and as a special assistant to the inspector general in the Defense Department.
He began his career in the Air Force.
The inspector generalâs position has been vacant for 14 months and Wired predicts a few bumps in the road ahead, âconsidering the headaches that Buckley is likely to inherit.â
The Washington Post reported the former Inspector General John Helgerson âspent much of his tenure sparring with the agency over an array of politically charged subjects.â