FAS | Intelligence | News | 2009 ||||

Newer News: May 2009

April 2009 Intelligence News

• Dems push for changes on briefings by Mike Soraghan, The Hill, April 29. "House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has been talking with House Intelligence Committee members about changes in the congressional briefing process that would broaden the number of members who get information and give them more latitude to challenge policies they oppose."
• Who attended "torture" briefings? A GOP lawmaker wants to know by Gail Russell Chaddock, Christian Science Monitor, April 27. "Rep. Peter Hoekstra seeks full disclosure about who on Capitol Hill knew about US interrogation methods -- a move that may put certain Democrats on the spot."
• Statement by Sens. McCain, Lieberman and Graham Opposing Prosecution of OLC Attorneys, April 22. "We write with concern about proposals to prosecute previous administration officials for their legal analysis related to the CIA interrogation program. Pursuing such prosecutions would, we believe, have serious negative effects on the candor with which officials in any administration provide their best advice, and would take our country in a backward-looking direction at a time when our detainee-related challenges demand that we look forward."
• Statement by DNI Blair on Interrogation Techniques Described in the OLC Memos, April 21. "The bottom line is these techniques have hurt our image around the world, the damage they have done to our interests far outweighed whatever benefit they gave us and they are not essential to our national security."
• DNI's Statement to the Intelligence Community on Release of the OLC Memos (pdf), April 16. "We cannot undo the events of the past; we must understand them and turn this understanding to advantage as we move into the future."
• Statement of President Barack Obama on Release of OLC Memos, April 16. "These memos speak to techniques that were used in the interrogation of terrorism suspects during that period, and their release is required by the rule of law."
• CIA Director's Statement on the Release of OLC Interrogation Memos, April 16. "Although this Administration has now put into place new policies that CIA is implementing, the fact remains that CIA's detention and interrogation effort was authorized and approved by our government. For that reason, as I have continued to make clear, I will strongly oppose any effort to investigate or punish those who followed the guidance of the Department of Justice."
• Statement by DNI Blair on the Release of OLC Interrogation Memos, April 16. "The Department of Justice released today four previous Office of Legal Counsel opinions which concluded certain harsh interrogation techniques used by CIA officers on suspected al Qa'ida terrorists were legal."
• Department of Justice Releases Four Office of Legal Counsel Opinions, news release, April 16. "The President has halted the use of the interrogation techniques described in these opinions, and this administration has made clear from day one that it will not condone torture," said Attorney General Eric Holder. "We are disclosing these memos consistent with our commitment to the rule of law."
• Right-wing extremists 'pose new threat to US' by Alex Spillius, the Telegraph, April 15. "Right-wing extremists in the United States are gaining new recruits by exploiting fears about the economy and the election of the first black president, the Department of Homeland Security has warned in a new report."
• DNI Blair Announces Plan for the Next Generation of Electro-Optical Satellites, news release, April 7. "Director of National Intelligence Dennis C. Blair announced today that the Office of the DNI along with the Department of Defense (DoD) have put together a plan to modernize the nation’s aging satellite-imagery architecture by prudently evolving government-owned satellite designs and enhancing use of U.S. commercial providers."
• DNI Appoints New Inspector General, news release, April 3. "Director of National Intelligence Dennis C. Blair has appointed Ms. Roslyn A. Mazer, a Justice Department Official, as Inspector General (IG) of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence."
• Northrop Grumman Corp. Settles False Claims Act Case for Defective Satellite Parts, Justice Department news release, April 2. "Northrop Grumman Corp., its subsidiary Northrop Grumman Space and Mission Systems Corp., and its predecessor TRW Inc. (collectively, Northrop) have agreed to settle for $325 million, False Claims Act allegations that Northrop provided and billed the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) for defective microelectronic parts, known as Heterojunction Bipolar Transistors (HBTs), the Justice Department announced today."
• Critical Intelligence Community Management Challenges (pdf), ODNI Inspector General, November 2008 (released April 1, 2009). "This paper identifies the critical leadership and management challenges currently facing the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) as leader of the Intelligence Community (IC) and as head of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI)."