Gibbons not likely to be tabbed House panel chairman

Suzanne Struglinski

Friday, Aug. 13, 2004 | 8:53 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., will most likely not be named chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, aides say, although nothing has been been made official yet, his staff said.

Gibbons spokeswoman Amy Spanbauer said the congressman has been led to believe he will not be named to the committee chairmanship, succeeding Rep. Porter Goss, R-Fla., who was tapped Tuesday by President Bush to take over the Central Intelligence Agency.

But House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., who would appoint a new committee chairman or chairwoman, has not made an official appointment yet. Hastert spokesman John Feehery said Thursday he was not aware of a final decision being made.

Gibbons has been considered a front-runner for the Republican nomination for governor in 2006, but the chairman's post is considered a plum assignment.

Gibbons, who also serves on the Homeland Security Committee, was in the running for the committee's top spot since Goss was nominated to be the CIA director and the two higher ranking members on the committee were not in the running.

Committee Vice Chairman Doug Bereuter, R-Neb., resigned from the committee on Monday. He will be leaving Congress on Aug. 31 to serve as president of the Asia Foundation and did not want to take over the committee while it was conducting hearings on the 9/11 Commission recommendations, a spokeswoman said.

Another potential candidate, Rep. Sherwood Boehlert, R-N.Y., is a member of the Intelligence Committee, but has said he wants to stay on as chairman of the the House Science Committee.

Hastert may name Rep. Peter Hoekstra, R-Mich., chairman, although he has less seniority than Gibbons on committee.

Calls to Hoekstra's office were not returned.