LANGLEY, Virginia — US President Donald Trump praises new CIA Director Gina Haspel at her swearing-in ceremony Monday, saying there was “no one in this country better qualified” for the job.
Striking a different tone than in his previous visit to the Central Intelligence Agency headquarters in Northern Virginia, Trump hails the agency staffers, calling them the “most elite intelligence professionals on the planet” and promises them the “the tools, the resources and the support they need.”
The Senate confirmed Haspel last week after overcoming concerns about her role in the agency’s use of harsh interrogation techniques after 9/11. Trump says she showed courage during the process in the face of “very negative politics.”
Haspel says she took pride in being the first woman to lead the agency, adding: “I stand on the shoulders of heroines who never sought public acclaim, but served as inspirations to the generations that came after them.”
Haspel says she wants to send more officers into the field, improve foreign language proficiency among the ranks and strengthen the agency’s working relationships with intelligence agencies in partner nations.
— AP
Incoming Central Intelligence Agency director Gina Haspel is sworn in by US Vice President Mike Pence during a ceremony at CIA Headquarters, on May 21, 2018, in Langley, Virginia. From left, Haspel, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, President Donald Trump, and Pence. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
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