| By David Morgan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Congressman Porter Goss, President Bush's
nominee for CIA director, could be his own worst enemy when it comes to
making the case that he deserves to lead the U.S. intelligence agency.
"I couldn't get a job with CIA today. I am not qualified," the Florida
Republican told documentary-maker Michael Moore's production company during
the filming of the anti-Bush movie "Fahrenheit 9/11."
A day after Bush picked Goss for the top U.S. spy job, Moore Wednesday
released an excerpt from a March 3 interview in which the 65-year-old former
House of Representatives intelligence chief recounts his lack of
qualifications for employment as a modern CIA staffer.
"I don't have the language skills. I, you know, my language skills were
romance languages and stuff. We're looking for Arabists today. I don't have
the cultural background probably," Goss is quoted in an interview
transcript.
"And I certainly don't have the technical skills, uh, as my children
remind me every day: 'Dad you got to get better on your computer.' Uh, so,
the things that you need to have, I don't have."
Goss, who served with the CIA clandestine services in Latin America and
Europe in the 1960s, was not immediately available for comment.
The White House dismissed the Moore interview transcript as "ridiculous
hearsay" and emphasized the depth of bipartisan respect for Goss on Capitol
Hill.
"Porter Goss has very strong support from Republicans, and Democrats
including Sen. Bob Graham of Florida," said White House spokesman Trent
Duffy. Graham is the former head of Senate intelligence.
"No one's really questioning his qualifications. Even people who say he's
too political for the job say he has qualifications for the job," Duffy
added.
Goss appears in Moore's film, the most financially successful documentary
in history, during a segment devoted to the USA Patriot Act, an
anti-terrorism measure.
Moore told Reuters that Goss, who until Tuesday was chairman of the House
of Representatives Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, granted an
interview to two of his producers without first checking to see who they
worked for.
"You'd think the person who was the head of the intelligence committee
would ask a few more questions," said Moore.
"The reality is that Porter Goss was in charge of the oversight of the
CIA during a time when the CIA didn't do its job, which in part resulted in
the loss of lives of 3,000 people," he said via telephone from New York.
Goss is expected to appear at confirmation hearings before the Senate
intelligence committee next month.
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