Fairies: CIA director seeks to clean up agency

Panetta vows to put end to 'war on terror' abuses, bar door to politicized intelligence of Bush years.

Obama backs Bush: No rights for Bagram prisoners

Leon Panetta, the new CIA director, is a savvy insider who has vowed to put an end to "war on terror" abuses at the spy agency and bar the door to politicized intelligence.

Panetta, 70, was sworn in Thursday by Vice President Joe Biden at a ceremony at the agency's Langley, Virginia headquarters.

Panetta sailed through Senate confirmation hearing, drawing on a reputation as a straight shooter with decades of political experience.

The agency he now leads has been shaken from its once preeminent position over the US intelligence community by a cascade of controversies since 2001.

The 2001 intelligence failures were followed by bad intelligence on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction and an international uproar over its use of secret prisons, harsh interrogation techniques and extraordinary renditions.

In a nod both to his inexperience in intelligence matters and a desire to reassure the agency's staff, Panetta has kept on a respected veteran, Steve Kappes, as deputy director. More

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