Ethical Dilemmas

The Concept of Ethical Obligation

George Tenet was appointed Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence in July 1995. He began to serve as acting director of the CIA in December 1996 when John Deutch abruptly resigned. Tenet ‘s official appointment to the office was July 11, 1997. He resigned June 3, 2004 for what he stated was personal reasons. Tenet was the second-longest serving director in the agency’s history.

Tenet served under Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. Very few directors operated under two presidents, especially when they represented different political parties. During the time that he was the director of the CIA, he was on a mission to regenerate the agency as it was suffering in a major way from a drop in recruitment.

1. Identify (4) four cross-coded ethical dilemmas facing former CIA Director George Tenet and assess their impact on his leadership abilities.

CIA Director George Tenet was faced with many cross-coded ethical dilemmas. While serving under the two presidents, the experience that Tenet had was totally different. Clinton kept the DCI at a distance while Bush and Tenet worked very closely and developed a personal working relationship. This created and ethical dilemma because he had to insure that the decisions that he made what was best for the organization and not based on the wants of President Bush. He was also faced with the dilemma of ensuring that his communications with the public were true and honest. He was faced with having to reform the CIA and change the perception of the agency in an effort to successfully recruit for the agency, while not loosing sight of the agencies mission. During his tenure, Tenet acted as a go-between for Yasser Araft and Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, this proved to be a huge ethical dilemma.