Updated below President Trump’s disclosure of classified intelligence information to Russian officials, reported by the Washington Post, may have been reckless, damaging and irresponsible. But it was not a crime. Disclosures of classified information are not categorically prohibited by law. Even intelligence sources and methods are only required to be protected under the National Security […]
In order to appoint a special counsel to investigate potential criminal activity in the executive branch, the Congressional Research Service explained last week, the Attorney General (or his deputy) “must determine that a criminal investigation is warranted; that the normal process of investigation or prosecution would present a conflict of interest for DOJ or other […]
There are at least four major “strategic security challenges” that could place the United States at risk within the next decade, physicist Richard L. Garwin told the National Academy of Sciences earlier this month. “The greatest threat, based on expected value of damage, is cyberattack,” he said. Other challenges arise from the actions of North […]
The ability to recognize and identify aircraft on sight remains a skill that soldiers need to acquire even in a highly automated military, according to the U.S. Army. “Soldiers must be knowledgeable in the identification of all types of aerial platforms ranging from fixed, tilt, and rotary wing aircraft and unmanned aircraft, in order to […]
When Congress and the President fail to agree on government appropriations and previous funding expires, the result can be a massively disruptive shutdown of the federal government. This occurred most recently in October 2013, and lasted for 16 days. “Government shutdowns have necessitated furloughs of several hundred thousand federal employees, required cessation or reduction of […]
Federal government agencies received more Freedom of Information Act requests last year than ever before, the Justice Department reported last week, reflecting a steadily growing demand for access to government information. Nearly 790,000 FOIA requests were received in FY 2016, an increase of more than 10% from the year before. The majority of requests were […]
In the new Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2017 (section 8009), Congress mandated that no new, highly classified special access programs may be created without 30 day advance notice to the congressional defense committees. But in signing the bill into law last Friday, President Trump said he would not be bound by that restriction. “Although I […]
A previously unpublished account of life in the Los Alamos nuclear weapons laboratory in the early 1950s describes a community determined to achieve, and to present, a semblance of conventional suburban life. It was circulated last month by Los Alamos historian Roger A. Meade. “In 1954 an unknown author drafted a report, reprinted below, describing […]
Given its length, complexity and limited availability, it is unlikely that most members of Congress actually read the full text of the American Health Care Act that passed the House of Representatives today. But the Congressional Research Service prepared a report, updated today, that includes an overview of all of the provisions of the Act. […]
Congressional oversight of intelligence often involves disputes over congressional access to intelligence information, records and personnel. But when it comes to internal Pentagon oversight, even the most tightly held intelligence programs are required to cooperate without reservation, a new DoD directive says. Thus, the Senior Intelligence Oversight Official is supposed to have “complete and unrestricted […]
Net neutrality, or unfettered and non-discriminatory access to the Internet, is the subject of current litigation, regulation and legislation. Background to the issue is presented in a newly updated report from the Congressional Research Service. See The Net Neutrality Debate: Access to Broadband Networks, May 1, 2017. Other new and updated reports from the Congressional […]
Are offensive cyber operations an act of war? “I would say specifically to your question what defines an act of war [in the cyber domain]– that has not been defined. We are still working towards that definition across the interagency,” said Thomas Atkin of the Office of Secretary of Defense at a congressional hearing last […]