HONORING JOANNE O'ROURKE ISHAM, DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF CONGRESSIONAL AFFAIRS, CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
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HON. LARRY COMBEST
in the House of Representatives
TUESDAY, MARCH 26, 1996
- Mr. COMBEST. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to call special attention to the dedicated work of Ms. Joanne Isham as Director of Congressional Affairs at the Central Intelligence Agency. Ms. Isham served in this demanding job for 2 years, taking over the office in a period of controversy following the reprimand of several CIA employees for their handling of the Aldrich Ames spy case. She recognized that the CIA's relations with the Congress were badly damaged by the spy case and set about immediately to improve them.
- Mr. Speaker, I witnessed a dramatic shift in the Agency's posture with the Congress following Ms. Isham's appointment. She initiated a series of reforms to ensure that the Intelligence Committees were kept fully and completely informed of significant developments at the Central Intelligence Agency. She accomplished this turnaround not with a heavy hand, but with fair and even-tempered management. Ms. Isham kept me fully apprised of significant developments in the intelligence community. She earned the committee's respect in a most difficult undertaking.
- Ms. Isham has now been promoted to be Associate Deputy Director for the CIA's Directorate for Science and Technology. This is a new position that will enable her to capitalize on her strong relations with the Congress and many years of experience in the CIA to bring a strategic and more corporate management team to the CIA's Directorate for Science and Technology. We will miss her at Congressional Affairs, but look forward to working with her in this new capacity.
- Finally, I want to note that, in recognition of her work, she was awarded the Contract With America's Distinguished Intelligence Medal by Director John Deutch on March 18, 1995, in recognition for her outstanding leadership and management of the Office of Congressional Affairs. I want to thank her for her service to her country and her unstinting bipartisan work on behalf of the intelligence community.