It’s an impossible job, and perhaps it was meant to be.
The Director of the Information Security Oversight Office (ISOO) has “responsibility for security classification, safeguarding and declassification policy and oversight throughout the Executive Branch of the United States Government.” Ability to leap tall buildings in a single bound is preferred but not required.
Except for the last part, that is the job description that was posted online yesterday as the search for a new ISOO Director commenced in earnest.
Bill Leonard, the highly regarded current Director, announced his retirement last month, to the surprise and dismay of many.
See the Job Announcement for the position of ISOO Director.
The human cost is measured in deaths. The financial cost is measured in the $52 billion taxpayers pay annually end stage renal disease – double NASA’s budget.
Gilman Louie, Longest Serving Board Chair of the Federation of American Scientists, Named Chair Emeritus
The proposed Office will resurrect the long-closed Office of Technology Assessment (OTA), the archive of which has been maintained by FAS for decades at https://ota.fas.org/.
If Congress needs help understanding the risks and rewards of a piece of technology, they shouldn’t have to rely solely on the sparknotes from a salesman. The rub is much simpler: Congress needs nerds.