Paradoxically, however, Mr Tenet leaves an agency which - by its own clandestine and nefarious standards - is in somewhat better shape than when he took over in 1997. For years the CIA had been buffetted by scandal (Aldrich Ames), internal controversies (such as the dispute over whether it discriminated against women employees) and a loss of nerve. The new director symbolised his approach by putting on prominent show in his office a photo of Richard Helms, a Nixon-era predecessor who was much reviled but whose loyalty was such that he even perjured himself before Congress to protect the agency's secrets. The message was plain: Mr Tenet would put the agency first.
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