Dead Drop: January 15

WARNING:  The below contains snarky political humor and may not be appropriate for sensitive readers.

NUMBER 2, MAKE IT SO:  President-elect Joe Biden has tapped Cipher Brief Expert David Cohen to be Deputy CIA Director.  He will become Acting Director on Inauguration Day, as Ambassador Bill Burns, tapped to lead the Agency, awaits confirmation.  While the retired career ambassador does not have direct intelligence community experience on his lengthy resume, Burns’ past service as U.S. ambassador to the Russian Federation and Jordan, as well as his service as Deputy Secretary of State should serve him well.  Just as important, is Burns’ management style, affability, and gravitas.  He reportedly is fluent in Russian and Arabic which might come in handy as well. Just prior to the announcement of Burns’ selection – the transition team let it be known that the CIA director nominee would not be a member of Biden’s cabinet. (In the Trump administration, both the CIA director and the Director of National Intelligence had cabinet status.) Insiders we talked with were unconcerned. “The only thing that being in the cabinet gets you is the obligation to show up for the State of the Union speeches and the problem of trying to figure out when to stand up and when to applaud,” one former official told us. Another issue is that CIA directors are supposed to stay away from making policy recommendations – which is pretty much the whole purpose of a cabinet meeting – so we’re guessing that Burns (who will be considered a “National Security Council principal”) may welcome not having to attend cabinet meetings.