The rise of “the wall” between intelligence and law enforcement personnel that impeded the sharing of information within the U.S. government prior to September 11, 2001 was critically examined in a detailed monograph (pdf) that was prepared in 2004 for the 9/11 Commission. It is the only one of four staff monographs that had not […]
For the first time in several years, the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence has once again published unclassified responses from the Director of National Intelligence (pdf) to questions for the record arising from the DNI’s 2008 annual threat briefing to Congress. In the past, such formal responses to Congress have offered an unexpected wealth of […]
The controversial idea of the “unitary executive” in which all executive power is vested in the President of the United States may be a coherent legal theory. But in reality, things don’t happen within the executive branch simply because the President commands them. In practice, what we have is a “fragmentary executive” the efficacy of […]
President Obama has still not appointed anyone to the President’s Intelligence Advisory Board (PIAB), Secrecy News has learned. The PIAB has broad responsibility for conducting internal executive branch oversight of intelligence, and it is specifically charged with alerting the President to intelligence activities that may be unlawful or contrary to executive order or presidential directive. […]
Rep. Frank Wolf (R-VA) placed two “sensitive but unclassified” (SBU) State Department documents in the Congressional Record last week, illustrating the informal, non-binding character of this information control marking. Rep. Wolf took to the House floor to express his views on the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), an advocacy organization that he said had unacceptable […]
Gen. Stanley McChrystal was confirmed by the Senate last week to be the new commander of U.S. (and NATO) forces in Afghanistan, a role that he assumed today. But his nomination was opposed by Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) who objected to the General’s advancement on unspecified “classified” grounds. “I oppose the nomination of LTG Stanley […]
Noteworthy new reports from the Congressional Research Service obtained by Secrecy News include the following (all pdf). “Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty: Updated ‘Safeguards’ and Net Assessments,” June 3, 2009. “The Role of the Department of Defense During a Flu Pandemic,” June 4, 2009. “Congressional Oversight and Related Issues Concerning International Security Agreements Concluded by […]
North Korea mistakenly believes there are U.S. nuclear weapons in South Korea. By Hans M. Kristensen The North Korean newspaper Rodong Sinmun reportedly has issued a statement saying the U.S. has 1,000 nuclear weapons in South Korea. In this regional war of rhetoric it is important to at least get one fact right: The United […]
The public has been significantly misled and misinformed concerning the practice of abusive interrogation by the U.S. government and the resulting damage to American political institutions, said Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) on the Senate floor yesterday. “I am very sorry to say this–but there has been a campaign of falsehood about this whole sorry episode. […]
Senators Joe Lieberman and Lindsey Graham said they would do their utmost to block the release under the Freedom of Information Act of photographs documenting the abuse of detainees held in U.S. custody. “Such a release would be tantamount to a death sentence to some who are serving our nation in the most dangerous and […]
Executive branch officials understandably seek to maximize their authority to regulate the distribution and disclosure of classified national security information, and they often cite historical precedents dating back to the days of President George Washington to justify their claims. But though some members of Congress seem not to realize it, Congress has an independent claim […]
One of the most successful innovations in the otherwise mostly stagnant domain of classification policy was the creation of the Interagency Security Classification Appeals Panel (ISCAP), an executive branch entity that was established by President Clinton’s 1995 executive order 12958. For over a decade, the ISCAP has maintained an astonishing record of ordering the declassification […]