New Inspector General Finally Watching CIA

The CIA has a watchdog again.

The agency says new Inspector General David Buckley started work this week, filling a post that had been empty for a year and a half.

The White House's unexplained delay in filling the job prompted criticism from lawmakers and human rights advocates who say a powerful watchdog is crucial for an agency where almost every action is conducted in secret.

The last IG, John Helgerson, left in March 2009. Helgerson had a testy relationship with the agency for his investigations of detainee deaths and abuses, the Bush-era harsh interrogation program, and the use of secret prisons.

Buckley, a former Air Force special agent, served previously on the House intelligence committee, the Senate investigations subcommittee and inspector general offices at Treasury and the Pentagon. Obama nominated him in August.