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 […]
The expanding role of women in combat is examined in another new report from the Congressional Research Service. “Laws prohibiting women from serving in combat units were repealed in the early 1990s,” the CRS report noted. “However, since then, it has been U.S. military policy to restrict women from certain units and military occupations, especially ground combat […]
The Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board that was supposed to provide independent oversight of U.S. counterterrorism policies remains dormant and out of service because its members have still not been named and confirmed. In a report that was newly updated this month, the Congressional Research Service traced the origins of the Board from a […]
The three ongoing prosecutions under the Espionage Act of individuals who allegedly “leaked” classified information to the press are slowly moving forward. Prosecutors will present their opening brief to an appeals court in the case of Jeffrey A. Sterling, a former CIA officer who is accused of leaking classified information to author James Risen, on […]
The U.S. government response to the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a brutal paramilitary group in Uganda, is discussed in a new report from the Congressional Research Service. The Obama Administration has provided humanitarian and operational support to Ugandan efforts to counter the LRA. Most recently, the U.S. has authorized the deployment of U.S. military advisers […]
The JASON defense advisory panel held its fall meeting last weekend with briefings on a range of national security topics. A copy of the program from the closed meeting is posted here. The JASONs completed at least seven studies this year for various government agencies with titles such as “Solar EMP” and “Domestic Nuclear Surge […]
U.S. government programs to identify and deport criminal aliens were detailed in an exhaustive report (pdf) from the Congressional Research Service. The Department of Homeland Security has four programs that deal with criminal aliens, which are discussed in the report. “While consensus exists on the overarching goal to identify and remove serious criminal aliens, these […]
The eagerly awaited declassification of vast amounts of historical intelligence satellite imagery that was supposed to occur this year did not take place, and it is unknown when or if it might go forward. Earlier this year, government officials had all but promised that the declassification and release of miles of satellite imagery film was […]
The Obama Administration’s uncompromising approach to punishing “leaks” of classified information has been widely noted. But its handling of pre-publication review disputes with former intelligence agency employees who seek to publish their work has been no less combative. Government prosecutors are preparing to confiscate proceeds from the unauthorized publication of “The Human Factor: Inside the […]