Who is John Negroponte?
A rabid fascist. An expert in illegitimate military operations. These are just some of the qualities of John Negroponte�newly appointed chief of the US National Counter-Terrorism Center (NCC).
Negroponte's experience in armed counterrevolution was one of George W. Bush's main bases for appointing him to the NCC�the so-called "super-agency" that will oversee 16 intelligence bodies throughout the US. Among the organizations to be placed under the NCC are the Central Intelligence Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the National Security Agency. The NCC was formed upon the enactment of the new US Intelligence Law signed by Bush in December.
Negroponte was a former US ambassador to Iraq and the Philippines. As head of the NCC, he is responsible for cooordinating the activities of all intelligence-related agencies. The NCC will enforce repressive measures against the people and suspected foreign terrorists. It will also intensify surveillance of countries accused of funding or providing refuge to terrorists.
Bush had long been pushing the US Intelligence Bill even before his reelection. It was one of the first bills he signed into law when he won, despite the fact that the American people strongly condemned it. Critics charged that the bill would curtail the people's civil rights and that the US government would be allotting a huge amount ($40 billion) for intelligence alone.
 As US ambassador to Honduras (1981-85) under Ronald Reagan's government, Negroponte approved the CIA's training of death squads formed by Honduras' pro-US government. The death squads arbitrarily killed many civilians and oppositionists. The CIA also trained in Honduras Rightist mercenary troops that wrought havoc in El Salvador. Negroponte likewise led in training the Contra, the CIA-inspired mercenary paramilitary group that overthrew the Sandinistas in Nicaragua. It was then that the CIA manual was issued, a terrorist handbook that outlined bombings and sabotage operations against various civilian infrastructure such as seaports, airports, water and power supplies. All this has prompted the Council on Hemispheric Affairs, a US congressional agency, to brand Negroponte a "Reagan gunslinger."
After retiring from government, Negroponte worked as executive vice president for global markets for McGraw-Hill, the company that owns Standard and Poor's, which rates the financial status of countries around the globe. He was recalled to government service to lead efforts to gather support for the US' war on Iraq, in which he failed. He was transferred to Iraq as US ambassador after the US had installed its puppet government in the country.
Negroponte's expertise in psywar and covert means of overthrowing those the US has chosen to do battle with is unmistakable. Under his watch, expect the use of dirty tactics like the torture and assassination of the US' perceived enemies, the formation of death squads and the subversion of established governments asserting their independence from the US.
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