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American Morning
Senator Patrick Leahy Discusses FBI Difficulties
Aired June 20, 2001 - 09:10 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MANY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Now we focus back here on this country on the FBI. The Bureau has been hurt by a series of embarrassments recently. Today, the Senate Judiciary Committee wants to look on how to restore the FBI's image.
For more on that, let's go to Jeanne Meserve who is in Washington.
Jeanne, good morning.
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn.
The new chairman of the Judiciary Committee has promised a top- to-bottom review of the FBI and it begins with this hearing.
Joining me from Capitol Hill, Senator Patrick Leahy.
Senator Leahy, a report this morning from the Associated Press that an FBI security expert who had access to informant identities and witness lists is accused of selling classified information to the Mafia. This, according to a complaint filed against him by the FBI. Is this the last thing the FBI needed?
SEN. PATRICK LEAHY (D), VERMONT: Well, it doesn't help because we're looking into what have been a series of mistakes. The FBI has always been considered the "crown jewel" of law enforcement agencies, but it's lost a great deal of its luster lately and a lot of that has been of its own doing. Most places, if you make a mistake, you try and learn from your mistakes. Too many times if they make a mistake they try to protect themselves, try to excuse the mistake and not learn from it.
We've seen everything from the failure to turn over documents - even the FBI director had ordered the documents on the Timothy McVeigh matter to be turned over. They did not do it. We see a - we see people who are held in prison for -- actually for decades because the FBI did not want to admit a mistake. Seen the Hanssen spy case. All of these things add up to a pretty damning indictment.
And what I want is not so much to trash the FBI, by any means, because there are so many good men and women working there, but rather to find some way to improve it. And right now between directors is a good time to do that.
MESERVE: Are the problems of culture, of management or of oversight or all three?
LEAHY: Well, I think it probably is parts of all three and partly the Congress is to blame. During the last six years, we should have been doing a top-to-bottom oversight of the FBI. We have not. I want to correct that. I want to make it a nonpartisan one. This'll be just the first of many hearings we'll have. But let's find out why mistakes cannot be corrected, why mistakes go undetected and how we restore the FBI to being one of the preeminent law enforcement agencies of the world.
MESERVE: U.S. attorney Robert Mueller being mentioned as a possible replacement for Louis Freeh. Is he the man for the job? Does he have the management skills that are needed? Can he win confirmation?
LEAHY: Well, you asked an awful lot of questions. I would hope that whoever they pick will have two things: One, very, very strong management skills but also would be scrupulously nonpartisan so he can have the respect and the backing of the Congress.
MESERVE: And does Mueller fit the bill?
LEAHY: I do not know him that well. I would hope that if he is the one, but I - I've not been asked by the White House who I - who I want for FBI director. That is going to be the president's choice. Whoever it is I think will face very, very tough questioning on Capitol Hill from both Republicans and Democrats because we all know there are some serious problems and those problems are going to have to be corrected.
MESERVE: Senator, let me switch gears quickly. News yesterday that the Justice Department is going to pursue a settlement in the tobacco case. Quickly, your reaction.
LEAHY: Well, you know it's been - after all that's been spent on that, all the damage to American's health, to suddenly announce, gee, all we want to do is settle, I think that's throwing in the towel far, far too soon.
MESERVE: Senator Leahy, thank you so much...
LEAHY: Thank you.
MESERVE: ... for joining us from Capitol Hill today.
Those hearings get underway this afternoon. Just shortly before that, Louis Freeh will be saying goodbye to employees of the FBI -- Daryn, Leon, back to you.
KAGAN: Jeanne, thank you.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: All right, thanks, Jeanne.
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