Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), a senior intelligence committee member and true-blue progressive, just called me to talk some more about the flap that arose on Monday over the nomination of Leon Panetta to head the CIA.

Speaking before news broke the Dianne Feinstein would support Panetta after all, Wyden began by making a point noted by some of our readers; that Panetta is hardly the first non-intelligence professional in line for the post. "What's striking here," he told me, "is that George Herbert Walker Bush, when he was named to the CIA, had no background whatsoever for the job -- and now the building is actually named after him."

Panetta was "immersed in national security questions" during his years as White House chief of staff and budget director under Bill Clinton, Wyden added. "People are trying to make the case that, because he wants to shake things up, he's inexperienced."

I asked whether internal resistance from change-resistant agency veterans might be helping to rouse discontent with Panetta's nomination. "Change is always frightening to some," Wyden said, recalling his leadership opposing the nomination of CIA counsel nominee John Rizzo last year. Long after the Bush administration had disavowed the infamous Bybee memo on torturous interrogations, Wyden recalled, Rizzo still declined to repudiate the document.

"I believe the agency is filled with dedicated, thoughtful, professional people," Wyden said. "With the right leadership [at CIA] the country can get back to the business of fighting terrorism ferociously while getting back to American values. That's the charge, and Leon Panetta is up to it."

One question remained: how Wyden came to know about the nomination before incoming intel chairman Dianne Feinstein, and whether it was a simple mistake as described by VP-elect Joe Biden. "I'm very pleased" that Biden spoke out yesterday, Wyden said.

Subtly acknowledging concerns in the netroots about Feinstein's commitment to banning torture, Wyden said he and the California senator were about to take to the Senate floor and discuss their bill to close Guantanamo Bay and make the Army Field Manual the uniform standard for interrogations.