A Conversation with the Director of National Intelligence, James R. Clapper 

James R. Clapper has served as Director of National Intelligence August 9, 2010. He leads the Intelligence Community, serving as the principal intelligence advisor to the President.  During the course of a long and distinguished career, he served in the U.S. Armed Forces, as a civilian, and as an intelligence officer. His 32 year career in the military started as a rifleman in the U.S. Marine Corps, and culminated as a lieutenant general in the U.S. Air Force and Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency.  He served two combat tours during the Southeast Asia conflict and held many intelligence-related positions, to include Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence at U.S. Air Force Headquarters during Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm and Director of Intelligence for three war-fighting commands: U.S. Forces Korea, Pacific Command, and Strategic Air Command. After retiring from the military, he worked for six years in industry, where his business focus was the Intelligence Community. He returned to the government in 2001, serving for five years as Director of the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency and for three as Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence.