Nearly two years ago , John Brennan worked hard to convince the Senate that he was no believer in torture -- and that if he was confirmed as CIA director , he would n't represent a return to George W. Bush-era tactics . He told Senators at the time that he 'd read the Senate Intelligence Committee 's summary of its investigation into those `` enhanced interrogation techniques '' and that it had `` raised serious questions '' in his mind about whether those techniques had been effective . Now , Brennan finds himself firmly on the other side , defending the CIA in the days after that report 's summary was finally release to the public . He 's slated to speak on the CIA 's interrogation tactics -- and the intelligence they elicited -- during a rare 1:30 p.m. news conference . It 's a stark turnaround for Brennan , and one that has infuriated some Democratic lawmakers . Colorado Sen. Mark Udall called for his resignation on the Senate floor Wednesday , and said the CIA is `` lying '' in claiming that rough interrogation tactics worked . RELATED : Udall blasts Obama , CIA on torture . The early portion of Brennan 's evolution -- from a top CIA official in the Bush administration to a torture skeptic as he sought confirmation as the agency 's director under Obama -- was on display at his confirmation hearing in 2013 . He admitted that he had n't taken steps to `` stop the CIA 's use of those techniques , '' but said that was because he `` was not in the chain of command of that program . '' `` The reports that I was getting subsequent to that , and in the years after that , it was clearly my impression that there was valuable information that was coming out , '' Brennan said . Then , though , he said he read the Senate Intelligence Committee 's report . `` I must tell you , '' he said , `` that reading this report from the committee raises serious questions about the information that I was given at the time , and the impression that I had at the time . Now I have to determine , based on that information , as well as what CIA says , what the truth is . And at this point ... I do not know what the truth is . '' He added : `` There clearly were a number of things , many things , that I read in that report that were very concerning and disturbing to me , and ones that I would want to look into immediately , if I were to be confirmed as CIA director . '' RELATED : Dick Cheney says 'The report 's full of crap ' Brennan , 59 , is a New Jersey native who speaks Arabic and studied at the American University in Cairo , Egypt while earning an undergraduate degree from Fordham University . He later earned a master 's in government from the University of Texas . He joined the CIA in 1980 , starting a career that saw him work as a Near Eastern and South Asian analyst , a Saudi Arabia station chief and leader of the agency 's terrorism analysis . He was the CIA 's daily intelligence briefer at the White House during President Bill Clinton 's administration and served as former CIA Director George Tenet 's chief of staff . After serving as interim director of the National Counterterrorism Center , Brennan left government to become president of The Analysis Corporation , a security consulting firm . During then-Sen. Barack Obama 's 2008 presidential campaign , Brennan served as an intelligence adviser . Once Obama won , Brennan was considered a shoo-in for CIA director , but he withdrew his name amid criticism of his support for the use of torture in George W. Bush 's administration . Instead , he became Obama 's deputy national security adviser . When the job of CIA director opened again in early 2013 , Brennan was Obama 's choice -- despite the concerns of left-leaning groups like the American Civil Liberties Union . He was confirmed on a 63-44 vote and was sworn in on March 8 , 2013 . RELATED : John Brennan Fast Facts .
Brennan faced questions about his role in the use of torture during his confirmation hearing . He has a press conference at the the American University , scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on Thursday . Brennan , a Cairo native who speaks Arabic , studied at CIA in New Jersey . Brennan was a CIA official under Brennan and advised Obama on intelligence .