General Gordon to White House

Two years after he became the first administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration, retired US Air Force General John Gordon has moved to the White House as a deputy assistant to President Bush to coordinate the federal government’s counteroffensive against terrorism. Gordon is replacing retired US Army General Wayne Downing, a hawk in the war on terrorism who reportedly became frustrated by his lack of influence in the administration. Gordon’s new title is national director and deputy national security adviser for combating terrorism.

“I am, of course, honored that the president has selected me for this important position, but saddened that I must leave NNSA before the entire job is done,” Gordon wrote in a 27 June departing message to NNSA employees. Gordon worked in the 1970s as a physicist at the Air Force Weapons Laboratory and at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico. After working in a number of national security positions during his air force career, he became a deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency in the late 1990s. Gordon moved from the CIA to NNSA in June 2000.

Department of Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham, in announcing Gordon’s departure from NNSA, said he “launched an ambitious effort to revitalize the nuclear weapons complex and its infrastructure after a decade of decline. He has also ensured that the nation’s nuclear weapons stockpile is safe and secure, that our nonproliferation programs are effective, and that we are continuing to meet the nuclear propulsion needs of the US Navy.”