CIA Director, Defense Secretary, Gentleman with Leon Panetta

Summary

Leon Panetta (Panetta Institute) joins Andrew (X; LinkedIn) to discuss his lifetime of American public service. Secretary Panetta was the 2023 recipient of SPY’s William H. Webster Award. 

What You’ll Learn

Intelligence

• Directing the Central Intelligence Agency
• Intelligence & the Abbottabad Raid
• Working within the Clinton Administration 
• A life’s dedication to the safety of the American public

Reflections

• The power of patience and the ability to listen
• Handing immense pressure and responsibility

And much, much more …

Resources 

SURFACE SKIM

*SpyCasts*

• My Life in American Intelligence with Barry Zulauf (2023)
• David Petraeus on Ukraine & Intelligence with the former CIA Director & 4* General (2023)
• Intelligence, Special Operations, and Strategy with Michael Vickers (2023)
• The 75th Anniversary of the CIA with former Director Robert Gates (2022)

*Beginner Resources*

• What Does the Secretary of Defense Do? MasterClass (2022) [Short article]
• How did the US find and kill Osama bin Laden? 60 Minutes Australia, YouTube (2018) [4 min. video]
• Leon E. Panetta, Panetta Institute for Public Policy (n.d.) [Short biography]

DEEPER DIVE

Books

• The Spymasters: How the CIA Directors Shape History and the Future, C. Whipple (Scribner, 2021)
• The Gatekeepers: How the White House Chiefs of Staff Define Every Presidency, C. Whipple (Crown, 2018) 
• Worthy Fights: A Memoir of Leadership in War and Peace, L. Panetta & J. Newton (Penguin Books, 2014)
• SECDEF: The Nearly Impossible Job of Secretary of Defense, C. A. Stevenson (Potomac Books, 2007) 

Primary Sources 

• Statement on Syria before the Senate Armed Services Committee (2012)
• Nomination of Hon. Leon E. Panetta to be Secretary of Defense (2011) 
• Statement to Employees by CIA Director Leon Panetta on the Death of Usama Bin Ladin (2011) 
• Nomination of Leon Panetta to be Director, Central Intelligence Agency (2009)
• Memorandum for Leon Panetta on POTUS’ Time Investment (1996)
• Letter from Brown to Panetta Regarding Fiscal Year 1994-1997 (1993)
• Letter to the Honorable Leon E. Panetta from George Bush (1977)

*Wildcard Resource*

• Secretary Panetta now lives on a lovely vineyard in sunny California. Speaking of wine and spies, check out Vint Hill Winery in Warrenton, Virginia. 
• In 1942 the US Army set up top-secret SIGINT operations at the now-vineyard after the farm’s owner, a Ham Radio enthusiast, set up a wire on the roof of the barn that could reach signals from Berlin. The farm was the site of The Signal Corps cryptographic school, which famously intercepted messages from Hiroshi Oshima in 1943. 

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