REAGAN TO FIRE CHIEF OF CIA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00552R000505410137-7
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: September 16, 2010
• Sequence Number: 137
• Publication Date: November 14, 1980
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/09/16: CIA-RDP90-00552R000505410137-7
THE WASHINGTON STAR (GREEN L
14 November 1980
Quick Action. Slated
By President-E d
By Jeremiah O'Leary
W3sSingto Star Staff Writer
GOLa~TA, Calif. - President-elect
]Rona::d Reagan, dismayed by what
he considers to be serious deficien-
cies in the nation's intelligence-
gathering capabilities, will remove
Stansfield Turner as director of the
CM, according to sources close to
Reagan.
? - They said that both Turner and
his deputy, Frank Carlucci, would
be replaced despite efforts by Turn-
. er to canvince?the incoming Repub-
lican adnanisttation that he should
-be allowed to remain-:-,-.
-, 'Onetask that has to-be addressed
immediately is to build- up the. CIA.
and our intelligence capacity," said
.Ed in Meese;?chief. of staff in the'
-Reagan transition organizations:
"The- Iranian situation. showed us
what's wrong with our intelligence.
Our brieftug attheState Department.
taade-it clear: that-they -ire getting
then: Information-from- other em-
ba?ssim other-intelligeaceservices,
friends and businessmen. who call
? them- up. It is a: tragedy.
Our sources. of intelligence are
only as good as they feel they will
-be -protected.", ? Meese said.."If you.
has constant turmoil in agent han-
dlers and people up and down the.
line, end if you don't )mow if agents
are going to be exposed by Philip.
'Agee and people like that. it is hard
to recruit' informants and agents is
'Reagan`' is scheduled fo'receive-a-
.CLA~briefing. next week, when he
will be in Washington. Aides to the
president-elect say he will tell Turn-
er. at_ that: time that he intends to
makehis own nomination: for a new
CIA director from the list of nary s
now being assembled by an ap-
pointments -committee headed by
Los: Angeles. attorney William
French Smith.:,
.'? -Within the next few days,theRea-
gan transition office will send a
small team headed by Lawrence Sil-
berman, former ambassador to Yu-
goslaria, to CIA headquarters to
begin planning a new structure for
the agency.
One of the most important voices
in recommending changes at the
CLA will be that of David,Abshire, i
chairman of the Georgetown Uni-
versity Center for Strategic and In-
ternational Studies. Abshire, a
former assistant secretary of state
for. congressional 'relations, heads
one of the Reagan 'issue cluster"
teams for national security affairs.
Silberman, a former--Justice De-Ipartment official, is team leader for
the CIA transition reporting to Ab-
.shire and John Lehman, former dep-
uty director- of .-the Arms .Control
and Disarmament Agency.- -' -z:
Critics of Turner contend that his
mass firings and retitements de=
prived the agency of its most exper-
ienced senior officers, damaged-the -
morale of others, and would inhibit
the recruitment of young officers.
Turner has contended that the CIA
has suffered no lack of bright young
men and women anxious to become
intelligence officers.
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/09/16: CIA-RDP90-00552R000505410137-7