WASHINGTON — Despite his public support for restructuring the nation's intelligence community, President Bush has done little to ensure that reforms modeled on the recommendations of the bipartisan Sept. 11 commission pass in the coming lame duck session of Congress.
And the legislation, which has run into stiff opposition from the Defense Department, is thought to have little chance of passage when a new Congress begins work next year.
The reason for the lack of presidential follow-through appears to be White House reluctance to challenge Pentagon officials -- and their congressional allies -- who have argued that some of the proposed reforms would weaken the Defense Department's ability to focus intelligence assets where they are most needed in time of war.
The Pentagon controls 80% of the nation's estimated $40 billion annual intelligence budget. Under the restructuring plan based on the 9/11 commission's report and approved by the Senate, much of that control would shift to a new national intelligence director. The House version of intelligence reform would shift less power to the new director.
Pentagon supporters have suggested that any major reduction in the Defense secretary's budget power could endanger American troops in combat by depriving them of intelligence.
The lame duck session -- in which Congress will try to finish work on intelligence reform and other bills left hanging when it recessed for the Nov. 2 election -- begins Tuesday. It could run as long as two weeks, but may adjourn in a matter of days.
Bush has said he hopes Congress will complete a bill to create a strong national intelligence director and counter-terrorism center. His press secretary has said that completing the bill is a priority for the president.
But House and Senate supporters of major restructuring say they have seen no sign this week of high-level White House involvement to force a House-Senate compromise on the competing versions of the reform bill.
"It would take [Chief of Staff] Andy Card or Bush making phone calls to get this done," said one Senate aide involved in the negotiations.
Congressional action during the lame duck session is vital, proponents of creating a strong intelligence director say, because the issue has begun to lose political steam.
