What the CIA doesn't see.

• Author: Meyer, Herbert E.
• Position: National Affairs - United States Central Intelligence Agency

"The problem with the [Central Intelligence Agency] lies within its structure and culture. It does not match the task because the analytic side of intelligence is unlike any other function of government."

IT IS OBVIOUS that something is wrong with the Central Intelligence Agency. The 9/11 attacks were, by definition, the worst intelligence failure in our country's history. Moreover, although Saddam Hussein has been captured, we have not been able to locate Iraq's weapons of mass destruction and there also was that flap over whether the CIA signed off on Pres. George W. Bush's accurate observation that British intelligence believes Saddam had tried to purchase uranium ore in Niger. In each of these cases, the CIA was asleep at the switch. In a war in which intelligence must play a central role, we need an agency that is razor sharp and playing offense, not one that blindsides the country or embarrasses the commander in chief.

So, what is the problem? Before answering this question, we need to acknowledge two points: First, intelligence is the riskiest, toughest business in the world. Compared with trying to project the future of global politics or discovering a country's most closely guarded secrets, day trading in the stock market is child's play and exploring for diamonds is a piece of cake. In the intelligence business, no one gets it right every time--or even most of the time--and it is easy to take potshots at honorable people who are doing their best under difficult circumstances.

The second point is that the CIA employs some of the hardest working and most decent men and women I have ever known. They are absolutely wonderful; we are lucky to have them and we owe them our gratitude.

The problem with the CIA lies within its structure and culture. It does not match the task because the analytic side of intelligence is unlike any other function of government. It is unlike budget-making, diplomacy, or the setting of policy for trade or agriculture. Intelligence is like science, which means that success depends on having the most brilliant people studying a situation. Only they will know how to go about finding the right answer--and how to communicate it clearly and early enough to make a difference.

As geniuses like physicist Albert Einstein and physician Jonas Salk remind us, in science, there is no substitute for sheer intellectual firepower--in other words, for brains. This is why scientific research institutes hire the smartest people they can find, and why they place the most brilliant scientists at the top to manage the team and, when necessary, to decide which of their proposed experiments to back and which to stop. That is why so many leading research institutes are headed by Nobel laureates and the big breakthroughs come from research institutes rather than government operated labs.

World War II roots

During World War II...