Bobby Ray Inman

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Bobby Ray Inman (1983)

Bobby Ray Inman (born April 4, 1931 in Rhonesboro , Upshur County , Texas ) is a retired American naval officer. He was director of the National Security Agency from 1977 to 1981 .

biography

Bobby Inman was born in Rhonesboro, a remote village in east Texas. He graduated from Mineola High School at age 15 and left the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Arts at age 19 . He then began his career in the US Navy, where he already worked with the National Security Agency.

Time at the NSA

In 1961, Inman began working at the NSA's Navy Field Operational Intelligence Office as an intelligence operations analyst, observing the Soviet Navy. On July 5, 1977 he became the youngest director of the NSA until then and held the post until March 31, 1981. As director, he twice deputy director, Benson K. Buffham was followed by Robert E. Drake and Ann Z. Caracristi . Inman set about working out a model that would allow the deputy to have a limited term of two to four years. In his opinion, the gray Eminence Louis W. Tordella had been in office too long.

In contrast to his predecessors, Inman presented himself openly to the NSA employees. He occasionally looked into different departments and took care of everyday work and not only the representation of the NSA to the other intelligence services in the USA and the rest of the American outside world. This led to a growing sympathy on the part of intelligence committees of the Senate and House of Representatives. Inman's openness to the authorities and the media, he even appeared once on the ABC program “Nightline”, also brought an end to the exposé stories about the NSA, which he cleverly anticipated. He also stated that the US had developed the asymmetric cryptosystem .

NSA versus CIA

By the time Inman became director, the NSA had grown from a weak position vis-à-vis the CIA to a strong organization. He wanted to outdo the CIA not only in spying but also in analyzing intercepted information. Government officials rarely refused Inman anything; when he campaigned for a project that exceeded budget, every effort was made to accommodate his wishes. This troubled Stansfield Turner on the CIA side.

According to the NSA

From February 12, 1981 to June 10, 1982 he was the successor to Frank Carlucci Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency and also held the post of professor at the University of Texas from 1987 .

In 1993, Inman was proposed by President Bill Clinton to succeed Les Aspin as Secretary of Defense . In the course of the introduction of the new candidate, rumors arose again that Inman was gay and therefore unsuitable as head of the defense department. Although Inman subsequently revealed parts of his private life, he was turned away. In a live TV program, Inman gushed negative statements about the allegations for an hour. He was the victim of a new McCarthyism and Senator Bob Dole and columnist William Safire had plotted against him. Instead of admitting he'd been dropped, Inman later attempted to portray it as if he had absolutely no intention of the Secretary of Defense's job.

Awards

Selection of decorations, sorted based on the Order of Precedence of Military Awards :

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Inman, Bobby Ray
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American naval officer and intelligence officer, director of the NSA
DATE OF BIRTH April 4, 1931
PLACE OF BIRTH Rhonesboro , Texas