Leaking classified information to an unauthorized person may be the right thing to do in certain circumstances, suggested Judge T.S. Ellis, III of the Eastern District of Virginia in a newly released hearing transcript from last year. In particular, he said, leaking may be an acceptable move if the leaker accepts full responsibility for his […]
It might be pleasant for writers and publishers to suppose that First Amendment principles of freedom of speech and freedom of the press are absolute and will prevail in every circumstance. But that is clearly not the case. For one thing, the Supreme Court has specifically excluded obscenity, child pornography, and certain other forms of […]
An extensive compilation of official documents, policy advocacy statements, and assorted commentary on the U.S. decision to go to war in Iraq in 2003 is presented in “The Iraq Papers,” a new book from Oxford University Press. Since it seems that there will be no new official reckoning of the Iraq war or other Bush […]
An updated description of the intelligence function of the Department of Homeland Security was produced last week by the Congressional Research Service. See “The Department of Homeland Security Intelligence Enterprise: Operational Overview and Oversight Challenges for Congress” (pdf), March 19, 2010. “Homeland Security Intelligence: Its Relevance and Limitations” was the topic of a March 18, […]
The Obama Administration presented “several misstatements of law and fact” in its March 15 letter opposing legislation to enhance the role of the Government Accountability Office in intelligence oversight, the head of the GAO said in a letter to congressional intelligence committees yesterday. The GAO letter (pdf) said that neither the Senate nor the House […]
Cuban President Raul Castro “more commonly presents himself as a civilian rather than military leader,” observes a new assessment from the DNI Open Source Center. More generally, “Current [Cuban] senior military officers maintain a largely ceremonial presence in state media, where the military receives limited but overwhelmingly favorable coverage.” The OSC report has not been […]
One of the simplest, most effective ways to strengthen congressional oversight of intelligence would be for Congress to make increased use of specially cleared investigators from the Government Accountability Office. This is such a straightforward step towards improving oversight that it was even championed by CIA Director Leon Panetta when he was a Congressman. But […]
A government website (USAspending.gov) that is intended to provide transparency on government contracts and awards currently presents incomplete, inconsistent and sometimes invalid data, the Government Accountability Office said last week. See “Electronic Government: Implementation of the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006” (pdf), GAO-10-365, March 2010. “Improving Transparency and Accessibility of Federal Contracting […]
The U.S. Joint Forces Command has updated its assessment of emerging geopolitical and technological trends and estimated their potential impact on future military operations in the new Joint Operating Environment (JOE) 2010 report (pdf). “We will find ourselves caught off guard by changes in the political, economic, technological, strategic, and operational environments,” the report states. […]
Nearly two dozen reports from the JASON defense advisory panel have just been added to the archive of JASON reports on the Federation of American Scientists website. New additions (all pdf) include a 2004 report on “DNA Barcodes and Watermarks,” a 2001 report on “Moletronics” or molecular electronics, and a 1998 report on “Insonification for […]
Executive branch agencies should “increase the use of prizes and challenges as tools for promoting open government,” the White House Office of Management and Budget said in a memorandum to agency heads (pdf) this week. “It is Administration policy to strongly encourage agencies to utilize prizes and challenges as tools for advancing open government, innovation, […]
Slowly and unevenly, the Obama Administration’s open government message is filtering down to the agency level. We have entered “a new era of open government,” Army officials informed a government audience recently. There will be “increased emphasis on the Freedom of Information Act… Agency FOIA programs must be improved… Commanders need to direct all agency […]