FBI Terrorism Investigations, and More from CRS
“Intelligence activity in the past decades has, all too often, exceeded the restraints on the exercise of governmental power that are imposed by our country’s Constitution, laws, and traditions,” according to the Congressional Research Service.
The CRS, which shuns polemical claims, presents that assertion as a simple statement of fact (although cautiously sourced to the 1976 Church Committee report) in a newly updated report on FBI terrorism investigations.
The report reviews the FBI investigative process, the statutory framework within which it operates, and the tools at its disposal, along with oversight considerations for Congress. See The Federal Bureau of Investigation and Terrorism Investigations, April 24, 2013.
Other new or newly updated CRS reports include the following.
Terrorism, Miranda, and Related Matters, April 24, 2013
Terrorism Risk Insurance: Issue Analysis and Overview of Current Program, April 26, 2013
U.S. Air Force Bomber Sustainment and Modernization: Background and Issues for Congress, April 23, 2013
Multiyear Procurement (MYP) and Block Buy Contracting in Defense Acquisition: Background and Issues for Congress, April 25, 2013
U.S.-South Korea Relations, April 26, 2013
Iran Sanctions, April 24, 2013
Intelligence Issues for Congress, April 23, 2013
Inflation-Indexing Elements in Federal Entitlement Programs, April 24, 2013
Changes in the Arctic: Background and Issues for Congress, April 25, 2013
Prevalence of Mental Illness in the United States: Data Sources and Estimates, April 24, 2013
Satellite imagery of RAF Lakenheath reveals new construction of a security perimeter around ten protective aircraft shelters in the designated nuclear area, the latest measure in a series of upgrades as the base prepares for the ability to store U.S. nuclear weapons.
It will take consistent leadership and action to navigate the complex dangers in the region and to avoid what many analysts considered to be an increasingly possible outcome, a nuclear conflict in East Asia.
Getting into a shutdown is the easy part, getting out is much harder. Both sides will be looking to pin responsibility on each other, and the court of public opinion will have a major role to play as to who has the most leverage for getting us out.
How the United States responds to China’s nuclear buildup will shape the global nuclear balance for the rest of the century.