President Obama last week formally initiated a review of national security classification policy, directing the National Security Adviser to prepare recommendations for revising the current executive order on classification. “My Administration is committed to operating with an unprecedented level of openness,” the President wrote on May 27. “While the Government must be able to prevent […]
Following sharp increases in the first several years after 9/11, the total estimated costs of implementing the national security classification system seem to have leveled off at around $10 billion annually, according to a new report to the President (pdf) from the Information Security Oversight Office. The total cost of protecting classified information in government […]
The tiny Muslim community of Bolivia was surveyed in a recent report from the DNI Open Source Center. The OSC report “is an overview of mosques, Islamic organizations, and religious leaders in Bolivia and their susceptibility to foreign Islamist influence.” Like many OSC products, this item has not been approved for public release. A copy […]
The organization, role and operation of the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC), which produces binding interpretations of the law for the executive branch, are usefully described in the Justice Department’s FY 2010 budget request (pdf). “OLC’s mission remains highly critical and urgent as the Department enters into a new era of responsibility confronting national security […]
A compilation of hundreds of U.S. nuclear sites and activities that were to be declared to the International Atomic Energy Agency by the United States was transmitted to Congress last month by President Obama. “The enclosed draft declaration lists each site, location, facility, and activity I intend to declare to the IAEA, and provides a […]
The North Korean nuclear test on May 25, 2009, was “heard” loud and clear around the world despite its apparent limited size. Detection of small, clandestine nuclear tests seems to work. . By Hans M. Kristensen The Korean Central News Agency reportedly has announced that North Korea “successfully conducted one more underground nuclear test on […]
On Wednesday, the FBI thwarted an alleged terrorist plot to shoot down a military cargo plane with a Stinger missile. According to a criminal complaint obtained by the New York Times, four men were arrested on charges of conspiring to use “a surface-to-air missile system to destroy military aircraft at the New York Air National […]
“We are launching a review of current policies by all of those agencies responsible for the classification of documents to determine where reforms are possible,” announced President Obama in a speech at the National Archives today. While the President has spoken broadly before of the need for greater transparency, this is the new Administration’s first […]
The White House today solicited public recommendations for greater openness in government. “Members of the public are invited to participate in the process of developing recommendations [by] offering comments, ideas, and proposals about possible initiatives and about how to increase openness and transparency in government,” according to a notice published in the Federal Register today. […]
Noteworthy new congressional hearing records on intelligence, national security or secrecy that have been published in the last month or two include the following. “Congressional Oversight of Intelligence Activities,” hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee, November 13, 2007. “Implementation of the Office of Government Information Services,” hearing before the House Committee on Oversight and Government […]
The Open Source Center of the U.S. Intelligence Community has prepared a descriptive catalog of websites (pdf) concerning the defense and security of Chile. “The Chilean defense establishment consists of military and civilian institutions, many of which have their own websites featuring institutional services, news, and academic reports,” the OSC report explains. “Many academic contributions […]
The Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court has appointed two new judges to the eleven-member Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, a spokesman for the Court said today. Judge Thomas F. Hogan of the D.C. District Court and Judge Susan Webber Wright of the Eastern District of Arkansas were each appointed to seven-year terms on the […]