By Chris Lawrence and Barbara Starr
The Obama administration is considering shifting lethal drone operations run by the Central Intelligence Agency over to the military, U.S. officials tell CNN.
The proposal is under "serious consideration," one U.S. official said. The official said no final decision has been made, and that there is no specific time frame in place, but that the change is being considered "due to a desire for greater transparency in who is being targeted."
By law, the military is not able to act covertly the way the CIA can, and it must answer to Congress.
The Daily Beast website first reported on the potential shift.
The military would operate and fly the drones, an administration official told CNN, but targeting would still be done jointly by various agencies.
The shift would happen over time.
"It won't happen overnight," the U.S. official said, adding that operations in some countries would transfer to U.S. military control before other nations.
"Yemen is an example of one of the first programs that could shift," the official tells CNN, while shifting the responsibility for the program that operates in Pakistan "would be much further out."
CIA Director John Brennan has expressed a desire to move the intelligence agency back to traditional intelligence-collecting.
"The CIA should not be doing traditional military activities and operations," Brennan said at his confirmation hearing.
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in either case..paki land will get hit by hell fire missiles!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
All people who want to kill innocents must be nuked.
That's what he said......
that has to be one of the dumbest statements I've seen yet.
not a good idea, let CIA do the dirty work, 'cause they answer to no one, army's hands are tied behind back.
Drones are a GODSEND!!!!!
KILL the Terrorists!!!!!!!! The enemy must DIE!!!!!
Kill all people who kill innocents, nuke them all.
CIA Director John Brennan has expressed a desire to move the intelligence agency back to traditional intelligence-collecting.
"The CIA should not be doing traditional military activities and operations," Brennan said at his confirmation hearing.
You mean like murdering an American President?
C'mon Rick,
Everyone knows the CIA hasn't been used to kill a US President since Johnson had it done to Kennedy. It's just too hard to cover up these days, and Biden has no hidden agenda like old LBJ did. Not many of the Cold war generals with a hunger for war left, and we've almost run out of 3rd world countries to attack, albeit North Korea wants to go for round 2 it sounds like. We all know that isn't going to happen, because China will foreclose on our country if we do, then we'll all have to learn Mandarin. Wait, the CIA could help us with that!
The cheapest and most effective way to eliminate terrorists and Islamic clerics is to pay bounties to Muslim women and provide them with exit visas. Osama Bin Laden was captured because he was betrayed by his concubines.
This is not going to make a dime's worth of difference. People in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Yemen are still going to be slaughtered like pigs in a pen by those godless weapons. The people who operate them, whether members of the C.I.A. or the Pentagon are war criminals who need to be bought to justice!
Don't you mean given a medal for a great service to their country?
Thank you, Phunnie boy. Only a feeble minded Tea Partier like you would come up with ludicrous idea like that. Besides, with comments like yours above, anyone with half a brain can tell that it's you, Phunnie boy posting under the name of 1371usmc!
and since when have you become "wjmccartan" GP#2?
sound like cry of a Pakistani moslem !!
I agree that the drone program should stay in the hands of the C.I.A. As well, as for Carlson or whoever he calls himself, just leave him alone, he is "one of those special people" he can't help himself.
I see your still using my name, what ever makes you happy, you can't change your snowflake. I know I've told you this before, I just thought I'd remind you. You must have been dropped on your head to many times as a baby. Your just a little slow aren't you, things not clicking upstairs.