The President would no longer be able to secretly modify or revoke a published executive order if a new bill introduced in the Senate yesterday becomes law. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Russ Feingold and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, responds to a Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel opinion that was revealed last year by Senator […]
Following a lengthy interagency review process, the White House yesterday unveiled its amendments to Executive Order 12333, the foundational document on “United States Intelligence Activities” that was originally issued by President Reagan in 1981. The new executive order reflects institutional changes that have occurred in recent years. In particular, it reinforces the authority of the […]
It was reported today in the Los Angeles Times that Bruce E. Ivins, a bioweapons scientist at Ft. Detrick MD has died of an apparent suicide. Ivins died on Tuesday, July 29, 2008 according to an obituary published in the Frederick News-Post. According to the LA Times, Ivins was under investigation in connection with the […]
In a new directive that challenges the insular culture of U.S. intelligence agencies, Director of National Intelligence J. Michael McConnell has ordered analysts to cultivate relationships with outside experts “whenever possible” in order to improve the quality of intelligence analysis. The DNI’s July 16 directive on “Analytic Outreach” (pdf) establishes procedures for implementing such outreach, […]
Though rarely discussed, interpersonal trust is frequently a prerequisite for voluntary information sharing not only between government officials and members of the public, but even among government officials themselves. “The effective flow of information and knowledge is facilitated through networks of trust,” a new report from the congressionally mandated Project on National Security Reform nicely […]
The Department of Defense has embarked on a significant modification of its intelligence apparatus, creating a new human intelligence center within the DIA, abolishing a controversial counterintelligence agency, and reorganizing the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence. A new Defense Counterintelligence and Human Intelligence Center (DCHC) is being established at the Defense […]
By Hans M. Kristensen and Ivan Oelrich Barack Obama has put forward an inspiring nuclear security policy that promises to reinstate nuclear disarmament as a central goal of U.S. national security and foreign policy. This vision has been shared by all presidents since the Cuban Missile Crisis, except for George W. Bush. If he is […]
The Department of Justice National Security Division (NSD) that was formed in 2006 by the merger of several DOJ intelligence and national security elements is attracting criticism from some intelligence officials who say that it is biased in favor of the FBI or, alternatively, that it lacks the agility that an intelligence organization needs. NSD […]
Prosecutors in the trial of two former officials of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee who are charged with mishandling classified information filed a pre-trial appeal (pdf) on Friday. The district court, they said, should not have ruled that two particular classified documents were admissible into evidence. In appealing the admissibility of those documents, the […]
Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) wrote to the Public Interest Declassification Board (PIDB) last week to request that it review the classified opinions of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance (FIS) Court from the last ten years and make recommendations regarding their classification or declassification. The FIS Court not only grants (or, rarely, denies) authorization for domestic intelligence […]
U.S. military spending on the war in Iraq has nearly matched the cost of the war in Vietnam, according to a new Congressional Research Service analysis (pdf) of the financial costs of wars throughout U.S. history. And total post-9/11 U.S. military spending has exceeded the cost of Vietnam by a considerable margin. The ongoing war […]
Some other noteworthy new reports from the Congressional Research Service obtained by Secrecy News include the following (all pdf). “China Naval Modernization: Implications for U.S. Navy Capabilities — Background and Issues for Congress,” updated July 10, 2008. “Satellite Surveillance: Domestic Issues,” updated June 27, 2008. “Defense Contracting in Iraq: Issues and Options for Congress,” updated […]