The White House Case For John Brennan To Run The CIA

President Obama's aides are circulating these talking points Monday morning in support of John Brennan, the chief White House counterterrorism advisor, who is expected to be named CIA director.

Here's the White House case for Brennan, who is expected to be less controversial than would-be Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel:

• John Brennan’s career of service and extraordinary record has prepared him to be an outstanding director of the CIA. Brennan served for decades at the Agency. Since 9/11, he has been on the front lines in the fight against al Qaeda. Over the past four years, he has been involved in virtually all major national security issues and will be able to hit the ground running at CIA

• POTUS: Brennan has the full trust and confidence of the President. For four years, he has seen the President every day, and been by his side for some of his toughest decisions – including the decision to launch the bin Laden raid. Brennan is as close to President Obama as any member of his national security team.

• Record: Brennan has excelled as the President’s top advisor on counter-terrorism. During his four years on the job, al Qaeda’s leadership has been devastated and Osama bin Laden has been taken out. He has also led the effort to take the fight to al Qaeda’s affiliates in places like Somalia. He’s helped navigate the challenges of this Arab Spring, including the transition in Yemen. And he’s bolstered our homeland security, improving aviation screening and terrorist watch-lists, and helping to guide our response to countless challenges, from tornadoes to cyber threats to Hurricane Sandy.

• CIA: Brennan has a deep understanding of CIA’s collection, covert action, and analytic missions. He worked for decades at CIA, serving in the field and at headquarters – including service as Deputy Executive Director, station chief in Saudi Arabia, and PDB briefer at the White House. He has enormous appreciation for the men and women of CIA, and the work they do – often in the shadows – to keep us safe.

• Intelligence community: Brennan has worked closely with other intelligence agencies. He is committed to investing in the range of intelligence capabilities we need—technical and human. And when it comes to sharing and integrating information across the Intelligence Community, he’s been a pioneer. After 9/11, he built—and then led—the National Counterterrorism Center to ensure better coordination

• Rule of law: Brennan has been an advocate for greater transparency in our counter-terrorism policy, and adherence to the rule of law. He has spoken out repeatedly about the need for strong oversight and review of our counter-terrorism actions, and has led efforts within the government to ensure that we put those ideals into practice.

• Bipartisan: Brennan has held senior positions in Democratic and Republican Administrations. He has worked closely with members of Congress, as well as Republican Governors like Chris Christie through his disaster relief efforts. He has no party affiliation, and has worked around the clock to protect our country.

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