WASHINGTON -- CIA Director James Woolsey, criticized for his handling of the Aldrich Ames spy case and U.S. intelligence priorities, resigned Wednesday, the White House said.


In a surprise statement, President Clinton said he accepted the resignation "with regret." He praised Woolsey for "advancing the transformation of U.S. intelligence in the aftermath of the Cold War."


But Woolsey had been under fire for weeks, as lawmakers criticized the way he handled revelations that Ames, a CIA counterintelligence officer, had been spying for Russia for years. The discipline Woolsey meted to several CIA officials was not severe enough for some lawmakers.


The statement did not indicate who would succeed Woolsey.


One of the names that has been mentioned as a strong possibility for the post is Deputy Defense Secretary John Deutch, the No. 2 man at the Pentagon.


The news of Woolsey's resignation came just hours after Clinton named Representative Dan Glickman, a Kansas Democrat, as his new agriculture secretary. Glickman had been rumored a candidate for Woolsey's job.


Outgoing agriculture secretary Mike Espy left under fire.