The Obama Administration is putting the finishing touches on a new executive order that is intended to improve the security of classified information in government computer networks as part of the government’s response to WikiLeaks. The order is supposed to reduce the feasibility and the likelihood of the sort of unauthorized releases of classified U.S. […]
How will Obama reduce the role of nuclear weapons in the strategic war plan? . By Hans M. Kristensen The Obama administration has begun a review of the president’s guidance to the military for how they should plan for the use of nuclear weapons. The review, which was first described in public by National Security […]
Even the most highly classified offensive cyberwar capabilities that are acquired by the Air Force for use against enemy computer systems will be subject to “a thorough and accurate legal review,” the U.S. Air Force said in a new policy directive (pdf). The directive assigns the Judge Advocate General to “ensure all cyber capabilities being […]
New reports from the Congressional Research Service on topics of economic policy include the following (all pdf). “Boosting U.S. Exports: Selected Issues for Congress,” July 21, 2011 “Economic Recovery: Sustaining U.S. Economic Growth in a Post-Crisis Economy,” July 18, 2011 “Inflation: Causes, Costs, and Current Status,” July 26, 2011 “Treasury Securities and the U.S. Sovereign […]
The government’s relentless pursuit of people suspected of mishandling or leaking classified information underscores the need to combat the misuse of classification authority, wrote J. William Leonard, the former director of the Information Security Oversight Office (ISOO), in an op-ed in the Los Angeles Times today. “The Obama administration, which has criminally prosecuted more leakers […]
A bill that would curb the ability of courts to impose secrecy orders on public health and safety information was favorably reported by the Senate Judiciary Committee last week. See the report (pdf) on the Sunshine in Litigation Act of 2011, August 2, 2011. “Court secrecy prevents the public from learning about public health and […]
A new edition of Jeffrey Richelson’s encyclopedic work on “The U.S. Intelligence Community” (Westview Press, July 2011) has just been published. The book provides a uniquely synoptic view of the structure and functions of the massive U.S. intelligence bureaucracy. Descriptive rather than prescriptive, the book serves best as a guide to some of the more […]
Four months after the retirement of the previous director of the Congressional Research Service (CRS), Daniel Mulhollan, no successor has been named. Today, the Library of Congress posted a solicitation on USA Jobs seeking applicants for the position of CRS Director. “A successful candidate for this position should have thorough, substantive knowledge of the Congress […]
Could the unauthorized receipt of classified information be a felony? Judge Leonie M. Brinkema made that startling claim in passing in a July 29 memorandum opinion (pdf) in the case of suspected leaker Jeffrey Sterling that was unsealed yesterday. But her statement is almost certainly a misunderstanding and a misrepresentation of the law. Judge Brinkema’s […]
A newly disclosed opinion (pdf) of the Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) concludes that if information gathered in the course of surveillance under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) is used to revoke an individual’s security clearance, then that individual is generally entitled to receive notice of the information that was used […]
Recent reports from the Congressional Research Service that have not been made readily available to the public include the following (all pdf). “Federal Support for Academic Research,” June 17, 2011 “Financial Aid for Students: Print and Web Guides,” June 24, 2011 “Patent Reform in the 112th Congress: Innovation Issues,” June 30, 2011 “Congressional Nominations to […]
The Senate Intelligence Committee rejected an amendment that would have required the Attorney General and the Director of National Intelligence to confront the problem of “secret law,” by which government agencies rely on legal authorities that are unknown or misunderstood by the public. The amendment, proposed by Sen. Ron Wyden and Sen. Mark Udall, was […]