21-05-10 Intelligence Director Dennis Blair to resign after critical report

The first head to roll over the failed Christmas underwear bombing is that of President Obama's intelligence czar.Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair will step down following this week's scathing report by Senate Democrats,which said his office failed to stop a Nigerian Al Qaeda operative from getting on a Detroit-bound flight from Amsterdam."It is with deep regret that I informed the President today that I will step down," Blair told all 16 intelligence agencies he oversees in a statement Thursdya."We have been interviewing several strong candidates to be his replacement," a U.S. official said.At a January oversight hearing,Sen.John McCain (R-Ariz.) pressed the retired Navy admiral to hold responsible those who bungled in failing to keep Umar Abdulmutallab out of the U.S.,comparing such accountability to relieving a ship's captain of command."The captain is sometimes relieved,and sometimes he isn't," Blair argued.The Senate Intelligence Committee recently issued a report slamming Blair and the National Counterterrorism Center - which is under his command - for failing to connect dots on the air bomber.But NCTC Director Michael Leiter,who took a White House-approved ski vacation after the attack,is safe for now,a source said.