Updated below Open Source Works, which is the CIA’s in-house open source analysis component, is devoted to intelligence analysis of unclassified, open source information. Oddly, however, the directive that established Open Source Works is classified, as is the charter of the organization. In fact, CIA says the very existence of any such records is a […]
There are more than 50 federal statutes that pertain to some aspect of cybersecurity, according to the Congressional Research Service. Those statutes, and the potential impact on them of several pending legislative proposals, are described in a new CRS report. See “Federal Laws Relating to Cybersecurity: Discussion of Proposed Revisions,” December 7, 2011.
The U.S. State Department insists that the publication of many thousands of classified diplomatic cables by WikiLeaks does not alter their classification status. In response to a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union for 23 of the cables, the Department of State this week released redacted versions of 11 […]
The Congressional Research Service gained a new Director this week, but it has recently lost several of its most experienced and accomplished analysts. Librarian of Congress James Billington appointed Mary B. Mazanec to be the new CRS Director of the Congressional Research Service. She has been serving as acting Director since the retirement of her […]
The Obama administration gets a medal for disclosing its New START treaty numbers. . By Hans M. Kristensen [updated 12 Dec 2011 with new bomber information] Anyone familiar with my writings knows that I don’t hand out medals to the nuclear weapon states very often. But the Obama administration deserves one after the U.S. State Department’s […]
A new report from the Congressional Research Service explores ongoing legal debates over the tracking of private cell phones and vehicles by law enforcement agencies. “It is undeniable that… advances in technology threaten to diminish privacy,” the CRS report says. “Law enforcement’s use of cell phones and GPS devices to track an individual’s movements brings […]
Congress is the most transparent and publicly accessible branch of government, and yet there are many aspects of the legislative process that are opaque and off-limits to public awareness, according to a disquisition on legislative secrecy from the Congressional Research Service. “Compared with the White House, the executive branch, and the Supreme Court, the U.S. […]
A study from Georgetown University incorrectly suggests that China has 3,000 nuclear weapons.The estimate is off by an order of magnitude. . By Hans M. Kristensen Only the Chinese government knows how many nuclear weapons China has. As in most other nuclear weapon states, the number is a closely held secret. Even so, it is […]
Director of National Intelligence James Clapper has issued a new Intelligence Community Directive on “Congressional Notification” (pdf) that generally encourages “a presumption of notification” to Congress regarding significant intelligence activities. The November 16 directive, designated ICD 112, elaborates on the intelligence community’s responsibility to keep the congressional oversight committees “fully and currently informed” of U.S. […]
Congress has the constitutional authority to conduct its business in secret and to close its proceedings to the public whenever it deems secrecy necessary. A new report from the Congressional Research Service reviews the justification, history and frequency of secret sessions of Congress. “Since 1929, the Senate has held 56 secret sessions, generally for reasons […]
Pending legislation to authorize and require military detention of suspected terrorists — which advanced in the Senate yesterday — was examined, section by section, in a Congressional Research Service report that was updated earlier this month. See Detainee Provisions in the National Defense Authorization Bills, November 18, 2011. Other new or newly updated CRS reports […]
The history, missions and operations of the nine U.S. military combatant commands (COCOMs) are detailed in a new report from the Congressional Research Service. Collectively, these military commands operate across the globe. “In a grand strategic sense, the [Unified Command Plan] and the COCOMs are the embodiment of U.S. military policy both at home and abroad. The […]