FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
4 October 2004

"As a result of recent press articles and attendant speculation, I have decided that I cannot accept an appointment as CIA's Executive Director. Allegations about my past would be a distraction from the critical work the Director of Central Intelligence needs to focus on, as well as a distraction from the war on terrorism and the other national security challenges being addressed every day by the extraordinarily talented and dedicated men and women of CIA. For those reasons, I thought it was in the best interests of the Agency and all concerned to ask the Director to choose someone else for the Executive Director position. In light of my decision, the Director asked me this morning to serve as a senior adviser to him. I accepted this assignment with pride and very much look forward to serving the Director in this capacity."