The Joint Chiefs of Staff recently reaffirmed the requirement to preserve historically valuable records pertaining to the Iraq War. “Operations ENDURING FREEDOM and NOBLE EAGLE and current operations pertaining to Iraq are a prominent part of American and world history. It is important that we preserve the historical records of these continuing operations and we […]
“The disdain and uncooperative nature that this administration has shown toward Congress… is so egregious that I can no longer assume that it is simply bureaucratic incompetence or isolated mistakes. Rather, I have come to the sad conclusion that this administration has intentionally obstructed Congress’ rightful and constitutional duties.” That rather damning criticism comes not […]
“We fully intend to put the Reimer Digital Library back to where the public can access the unclassified documents,” wrote U.S. Army Major General Tony Cucolo in an email message to Secrecy News. Public access to the online library of U.S. Army publications has been blocked since February 6, when a system security upgrade was […]
The leading presidential candidates should be questioned about their willingness to depart from the secrecy practices that have characterized the Bush Administration, wrote civil libertarian Nat Hentoff in his syndicated column this week. Whether it concerns domestic surveillance, coercive interrogation, or extraordinary rendition, “I haven’t heard any of the frontrunners stress this need for a […]
The simplest, most effective and most achievable way to improve congressional oversight of intelligence might be to utilize the Government Accountability Office to audit and evaluate intelligence programs, a prospect that is opposed by the Director of National Intelligence. The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee will hold a hearing on Friday, February 29 […]
By Hans M. Kristensen The recent Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Air Force nuclear weapons safety was a welcome but long-overdue event. Internal reports about deteriorating nuclear weapon safety and surety in the Air Force have been accumulating since the early 1990s, but six nuclear weapons had to “disappear” for a day from Minot […]
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence provided an overview of U.S. intelligence data mining development programs in a new report to Congress (pdf). Data mining is used by intelligence agencies to search through databases in order to discern patterns of activity that could indicate a threat to national security. The new report presents […]
Although we have declined more requests for comment about Wikileaks than we have responded to, some participants in the project feel that we have said too much. Jay Lim of Wikileaks sent the following advisory email today: “Who’s side are you on here Stephen? It is time this constant harping stopped.” “You know full well […]
Some noteworthy new reports from the Congressional Research Service on nuclear weapons policy include the following (all pdf). “U.S. Nuclear Weapons: Changes in Policy and Force Structure,” updated January 23, 2008. “Nuclear Arms Control: The Strategic Offensive Reductions Treaty,” updated January 18, 2008. “Managing the Nuclear Fuel Cycle: Policy Implications of Expanding Global Access to […]
The U.S. Army said today that it would restore public access to the online Reimer Digital Library of Army publications, after having blocked the site on February 6. Last week, the Federation of American Scientists filed a Freedom of Information Act request asking for a copy of the entire Reimer collection for publication on the […]
The Department of Justice Office of Professional Responsibility has declined to open an investigation into allegations that Justice Department attorneys improperly refused to respond to the Information Security Oversight Office when it challenged the Office of the Vice President’s failure to cooperate with ISOO’s oversight of the classification system. In a January 2, 2008 complaint, […]
Noteworthy new reports from the Congressional Research Service that have not been made readily available to the public include these (all pdf). “Instances of Use of United States Armed Forces Abroad, 1798-2007,” updated January 14, 2008. “The Cost of Iraq, Afghanistan, and Other Global War on Terror Operations Since 9/11,” updated February 8, 2008. “Defense: […]