-Caveat Lector-
In a message dated 8/13/2004 7:12:10 PM Eastern Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5675992/site/newsweek/
Goss's Wish List
By Michael Isikoff and Mark Hosenball
Newsweek
Bush.s CIA nominee has alarmed civil libertarians with a plan that
would authorize the agency to arrest U.S. citizens. Plus, the real
threat to the Olympic games
Wednesday 11 August 2004
Rep. Porter Goss, President Bush.s nominee to head the CIA, recently
introduced legislation that would give the president new authority
to direct CIA agents to conduct law-enforcement operations inside
the United States.including arresting American citizens.
The legislation, introduced by Goss on June 16 and touted as an
.intelligence reform. bill, would substantially restructure the
U.S. intelligence community by giving the director of Central
Intelligence (DCI) broad new powers to oversee its various components
scattered throughout the government.
But in language that until now has not gotten any public attention,
the Goss bill would also redefine the authority of the DCI in such
a way as to substantially alter.if not overturn.a 57-year-old ban
on the CIA conducting operations inside the United States.
The language contained in the Goss bill has alarmed civil-liberties
advocates. It also today prompted one former top CIA official to
describe it as a potentially .dramatic. change in the guidelines
that have governed U.S. intelligence operations for more than a
half century.
.This language on its face would have allowed President Nixon to authorize the CIA to bug the Democratic National Committee headquarters,. Jeffrey H. Smith, who served as general counsel of the CIA between 1995 and 1996, told NEWSWEEK. .I can.t imagine what Porter had in mind..
Goss himself could not be reached for comment today. But a congressional
source familiar with the drafting of Goss.s bill said the language
reflects a concern that he and others in the U.S. intelligence
community share.that the lines between foreign and domestic
intelligence have become increasingly blurred by the war on terrorism.
At the time he introduced the bill, Goss thought the 9/11 commission
might recommend the creation of a new domestic intelligence agency
patterned after Britain.s M.I.5. The commission ended up rejecting
such a proposal on civil-liberties grounds. But in his bill Goss
wanted to give the DCI and a newly empowered CIA the .flexibility..if
directed by the president.to oversee and even conduct whatever
domestic intelligence and law-enforcement operations might be needed
to combat the terrorism threat, the congressional official said.
.This is just a proposal,. said the congressional official familiar with the drafting of Goss.s bill. .It was designed as a point of discussion, a point of debate. It.s not carved in stone..
But other congressional staffers predicted that the Goss bill, even
if it has little chance of passage, is likely to get substantial
scrutiny at his upcoming confirmation hearings.in part as an
opportunity to explore his own attitudes toward civil liberties.
Those hearings are already expected to be unusually contentious.partly
because of concerns among Democrats that the Florida Republican, a
former CIA officer himself who has chaired the House Intelligence
Committee, has been too partisan and too close to the Bush White
House. But so far, most staffers expect Goss to be confirmed
eventually.if only because Democrats are loath to appear overly
obstructionist on a matter that might be portrayed as central to
national security.
The Goss bill tracks current law by stating that the DCI shall
.collect, coordinate and direct. the collection of intelligence by
the U.S. government.except that the CIA .may not exercise police,
subpoena, or law enforcement powers within the United States..
The bill then adds new language after that clause, however, saying
that the ban on domestic law-enforcement operations applies .except
as otherwise permitted by law or as directed by the president..
In effect, one former top U.S. intelligence community official told
NEWSWEEK, the language in the Goss bill would enable the president
to issue secret findings allowing the CIA to conduct covert operations
inside the United States.without even any notification to Congress.
The former official said the proposal appeared to have been generated
by Goss.s staff on the House Intelligence Committee, adding that
the language raises the question: .If you can.t control a staff of
dozens, how are you going to control the tens of thousands of people
who work for the U.S. intelligence community?.
A CIA spokeswoman said today that, while familiar with the provision,
she was not aware of any agency official seeking such a modification
to the longstanding ban on the CIA from conducting domestic
law-enforcement operations. (Ever since the creation of the CIA in
1947, the agency has been excluded from federal law-enforcement
within the United States. That function was left to the FBI.which
must operate in conformity to domestic laws and, in more recent
years, under guidelines promulgated by the attorney general designed
to insure protection of the rights of citizens.)
Sean McCormack, a White House spokesman, said the president.s own
proposal for the creation of a national intelligence director.separate
from the director of the CIA.to oversee the entire U.S. intelligence
community does not envision any change along the lines called for
in the Goss bill. .I have not heard any discussion of that,. said
McCormack about the idea of allowing the CIA to operate domestically.
Some congressional staffers speculated today that Goss most likely
had reached an understanding with President Bush that, if Congress
does create the new position of a national intelligence director,
he would move into that position rather than serve in the No. 2
position of CIA director. Asked if such a deal had been reached,
McCormack responded: .Nothing has been ruled in or out..
Goss introduced his legislation, H.R. 4584, on June 16.before the
September 11 commission issued its own recommendations for the
creation of a national intelligence director as well as a new
National Counterterrorism Center that would conduct .joint operational
planning. of counterterrorism operations involving both the FBI
inside the United States and the CIA abroad. The congressional
official familiar with the Goss bill pointed to that proposal as a
recognition of the increasingly fuzzy lines between foreign
intelligence operations and domestic law enforcement.
The proposal comes at a time when the Pentagon is also seeking new
powers to conduct intelligence operations inside the United States.
A proposal, adopted last spring by the Senate Intelligence Committee
at the request of the Pentagon, would eliminate a legal barrier
that has sharply restricted the Defense Intelligence Agency and
other Pentagon intelligence agencies from recruiting sources inside
the United States.
That restriction currently requires that Pentagon agencies be covered
by the Privacy Act, meaning that they must notify any individual
they contact as to who they are talking to and what the agency is
talking to them about.and then keep records of any information they
collect about U.S. citizens. These are then subject to disclosure
to those citizens. Pentagon officials say this has made it all but
impossible for them to recruit intelligence sources and conduct
covert operations inside the country.intelligence gathering, they
say, that is increasingly needed to protect against any potential
terror threats to U.S. military bases and even contractors. But
critics have charged the new provision could open the door for the
Pentagon to spy on U.S. citizens.a concern that some said today is
only amplified by the language in the Goss bill.
Olympic Threats
How serious is the terror threat to the Olympics? Because Greece
has a long and intricate coastline with dozens of islands, the
country is viewed as relatively vulnerable to infiltration. And
while security for Olympic venues is tight, Athens presents a whole
range of civilian "soft targets" that are less well protected.
Nevertheless, U.S. intelligence officials tell NEWSWEEK, it.s not
Al Qaeda they are most worried about. Instead, officials say the
most imminent threat to the peace of the games is anarchist and
antiglobalization activists of the type who caused significant
violence and property damage at a summit several years ago in
Seattle. Officials believe such protestors plan to swarm Athens and
conduct a campaign of disruption and vandalism.
It.s not that officials are complacent. But sources say that the
.chatter. they are picking up on Al Qaeda-linked Web sites is focused
more on targeting the United States mainland and American interests
abroad than on possible threats against the Olympics.
Specific Al Qaeda threats to the U.S., to U.S. interests abroad and
to countries working with Washington in Iraq are regarded by American
intelligence as more foreboding than possible threats to the Olympics.
Several months ago, Osama bin Laden issued a message threatening
to attack countries which did not withdraw from Iraq within 90 days,
a deadline which expired in July. "I think we will be seeing some
serious attempts to make good on that promise," a senior U.S.
counterterror official told NEWSWEEK. But the official said he was
unaware of any more specific threat that bin Laden made against the
Olympics.
www.ctrl.org DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. SubstanceÃâânot soap-boxingÃââplease! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'Ãââwith its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright fraudsÃââis used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply.
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Subject: CIA NOMINEE HAS PLANS FOR US DOMESTIC ROLE
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-Caveat Lector-
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5675992/site/newsweek/
Goss's Wish List
By Michael Isikoff and Mark Hosenball
Newsweek
Bush.s CIA nominee has alarmed civil libertarians with a plan that
would authorize the agency to arrest U.S. citizens. Plus, the real
threat to the Olympic games
Wednesday 11 August 2004
Rep. Porter Goss, President Bush.s nominee to head the CIA, recently
introduced legislation that would give the president new authority
to direct CIA agents to conduct law-enforcement operations inside
the United States.including arresting American citizens.
The legislation, introduced by Goss on June 16 and touted as an
.intelligence reform. bill, would substantially restructure the
U.S. intelligence community by giving the director of Central
Intelligence (DCI) broad new powers to oversee its various components
scattered throughout the government.
But in language that until now has not gotten any public attention,
the Goss bill would also redefine the authority of the DCI in such
a way as to substantially alter.if not overturn.a 57-year-old ban
on the CIA conducting operations inside the United States.
The language contained in the Goss bill has alarmed civil-liberties
advocates. It also today prompted one former top CIA official to
describe it as a potentially .dramatic. change in the guidelines
that have governed U.S. intelligence operations for more than a
half century.
.This language on its face would have allowed President Nixon to authorize the CIA to bug the Democratic National Committee headquarters,. Jeffrey H. Smith, who served as general counsel of the CIA between 1995 and 1996, told NEWSWEEK. .I can.t imagine what Porter had in mind..
Goss himself could not be reached for comment today. But a congressional
source familiar with the drafting of Goss.s bill said the language
reflects a concern that he and others in the U.S. intelligence
community share.that the lines between foreign and domestic
intelligence have become increasingly blurred by the war on terrorism.
At the time he introduced the bill, Goss thought the 9/11 commission
might recommend the creation of a new domestic intelligence agency
patterned after Britain.s M.I.5. The commission ended up rejecting
such a proposal on civil-liberties grounds. But in his bill Goss
wanted to give the DCI and a newly empowered CIA the .flexibility..if
directed by the president.to oversee and even conduct whatever
domestic intelligence and law-enforcement operations might be needed
to combat the terrorism threat, the congressional official said.
.This is just a proposal,. said the congressional official familiar with the drafting of Goss.s bill. .It was designed as a point of discussion, a point of debate. It.s not carved in stone..
But other congressional staffers predicted that the Goss bill, even
if it has little chance of passage, is likely to get substantial
scrutiny at his upcoming confirmation hearings.in part as an
opportunity to explore his own attitudes toward civil liberties.
Those hearings are already expected to be unusually contentious.partly
because of concerns among Democrats that the Florida Republican, a
former CIA officer himself who has chaired the House Intelligence
Committee, has been too partisan and too close to the Bush White
House. But so far, most staffers expect Goss to be confirmed
eventually.if only because Democrats are loath to appear overly
obstructionist on a matter that might be portrayed as central to
national security.
The Goss bill tracks current law by stating that the DCI shall
.collect, coordinate and direct. the collection of intelligence by
the U.S. government.except that the CIA .may not exercise police,
subpoena, or law enforcement powers within the United States..
The bill then adds new language after that clause, however, saying
that the ban on domestic law-enforcement operations applies .except
as otherwise permitted by law or as directed by the president..
In effect, one former top U.S. intelligence community official told
NEWSWEEK, the language in the Goss bill would enable the president
to issue secret findings allowing the CIA to conduct covert operations
inside the United States.without even any notification to Congress.
The former official said the proposal appeared to have been generated
by Goss.s staff on the House Intelligence Committee, adding that
the language raises the question: .If you can.t control a staff of
dozens, how are you going to control the tens of thousands of people
who work for the U.S. intelligence community?.
A CIA spokeswoman said today that, while familiar with the provision,
she was not aware of any agency official seeking such a modification
to the longstanding ban on the CIA from conducting domestic
law-enforcement operations. (Ever since the creation of the CIA in
1947, the agency has been excluded from federal law-enforcement
within the United States. That function was left to the FBI.which
must operate in conformity to domestic laws and, in more recent
years, under guidelines promulgated by the attorney general designed
to insure protection of the rights of citizens.)
Sean McCormack, a White House spokesman, said the president.s own
proposal for the creation of a national intelligence director.separate
from the director of the CIA.to oversee the entire U.S. intelligence
community does not envision any change along the lines called for
in the Goss bill. .I have not heard any discussion of that,. said
McCormack about the idea of allowing the CIA to operate domestically.
Some congressional staffers speculated today that Goss most likely
had reached an understanding with President Bush that, if Congress
does create the new position of a national intelligence director,
he would move into that position rather than serve in the No. 2
position of CIA director. Asked if such a deal had been reached,
McCormack responded: .Nothing has been ruled in or out..
Goss introduced his legislation, H.R. 4584, on June 16.before the
September 11 commission issued its own recommendations for the
creation of a national intelligence director as well as a new
National Counterterrorism Center that would conduct .joint operational
planning. of counterterrorism operations involving both the FBI
inside the United States and the CIA abroad. The congressional
official familiar with the Goss bill pointed to that proposal as a
recognition of the increasingly fuzzy lines between foreign
intelligence operations and domestic law enforcement.
The proposal comes at a time when the Pentagon is also seeking new
powers to conduct intelligence operations inside the United States.
A proposal, adopted last spring by the Senate Intelligence Committee
at the request of the Pentagon, would eliminate a legal barrier
that has sharply restricted the Defense Intelligence Agency and
other Pentagon intelligence agencies from recruiting sources inside
the United States.
That restriction currently requires that Pentagon agencies be covered
by the Privacy Act, meaning that they must notify any individual
they contact as to who they are talking to and what the agency is
talking to them about.and then keep records of any information they
collect about U.S. citizens. These are then subject to disclosure
to those citizens. Pentagon officials say this has made it all but
impossible for them to recruit intelligence sources and conduct
covert operations inside the country.intelligence gathering, they
say, that is increasingly needed to protect against any potential
terror threats to U.S. military bases and even contractors. But
critics have charged the new provision could open the door for the
Pentagon to spy on U.S. citizens.a concern that some said today is
only amplified by the language in the Goss bill.
Olympic Threats
How serious is the terror threat to the Olympics? Because Greece
has a long and intricate coastline with dozens of islands, the
country is viewed as relatively vulnerable to infiltration. And
while security for Olympic venues is tight, Athens presents a whole
range of civilian "soft targets" that are less well protected.
Nevertheless, U.S. intelligence officials tell NEWSWEEK, it.s not
Al Qaeda they are most worried about. Instead, officials say the
most imminent threat to the peace of the games is anarchist and
antiglobalization activists of the type who caused significant
violence and property damage at a summit several years ago in
Seattle. Officials believe such protestors plan to swarm Athens and
conduct a campaign of disruption and vandalism.
It.s not that officials are complacent. But sources say that the
.chatter. they are picking up on Al Qaeda-linked Web sites is focused
more on targeting the United States mainland and American interests
abroad than on possible threats against the Olympics.
Specific Al Qaeda threats to the U.S., to U.S. interests abroad and
to countries working with Washington in Iraq are regarded by American
intelligence as more foreboding than possible threats to the Olympics.
Several months ago, Osama bin Laden issued a message threatening
to attack countries which did not withdraw from Iraq within 90 days,
a deadline which expired in July. "I think we will be seeing some
serious attempts to make good on that promise," a senior U.S.
counterterror official told NEWSWEEK. But the official said he was
unaware of any more specific threat that bin Laden made against the
Olympics.
www.ctrl.org
DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER
==========
CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic
screeds are unwelcomed. Substanceânot soap-boxingâplease! These are
sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'âwith its many half-truths, mis-
directions and outright fraudsâis used politically by different groups with
major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought.
That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and
always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no
credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply.
Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector.
========================================================================
Archives Available at:
http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/
<A HREF="">ctrl</A>
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