John O Brennan, President Barack Obama’s counterterrorism adviser and a key architect of US drone policy, moved a step closer to becoming CIA Director when Senate’s Intelligence Committee approved his nomination with a 12-3 vote.
Brennan, 57, now faces a vote before the full Senate. According to the Washington Post, the 25-year CIA veteran is widely expected to win confirmation despite lingering concerns regarding the administration’s refusal to let lawmakers see the full list of legal memos on targeted killing operations.
The committee’s verdict came after the White House agreed to give lawmakers’ access to additional secret Justice Department memos that provide the Obama administration’s legal justification for the killing of US citizens accused of collaborating with al Qaeda overseas.
