Inadvertent Disclosures of Classified Nuclear Info
The Department of Energy has released a sanitized version of its nineteenth report to Congress on inadvertent releases of classified nuclear weapons information through the declassification process.
Out of more than 150,000 pages at the National Archives that were reviewed by DOE, 16 pages contained Restricted Data, and another 99 pages contained Formerly Restricted Data (which is also classified).
As in the past, the most common type of inadvertent release concerned the locations of historical nuclear weapons storage depots. However, some design-related information was also inadvertently released. All of this material has now been withdrawn from public access.
See “Nineteenth Report to Congress on Inadvertent Releases of Restricted Data and Formerly Restricted Data Under Executive Order 12958,” November 2005 (released in declassified form January 2006).
If this proposed rule were enacted it would have deleterious effects on government workers in general and federal researchers and scientists, specifically.
When we introduce “at-will” employment to government employees, we also introduce the potential for environments where people are more concerned about self-preservation than service to others.
There is no better time to re-invigorate America’s innovation edge by investing in R&D to create and capture “industries of the future,” re-shoring capital and expertise, and working closely with allies to expand our capabilities while safeguarding those technologies that are critical to our security.
Russia currently maintains nearly 5,460 nuclear warheads, with an estimated 1,718 deployed. This represents a slight decrease in total warheads from previous years but still positions Russia as the world’s largest nuclear power alongside the United States.