Report on the Surveillance Program Operated Pursuant to Sec7on 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, Pre-Release July 2, 2014. “During the course of this study, it became clear to the Board that each program required a level of review that was best undertaken and presented to the public in a separate report. As such, the… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Defense
New GAO Reports – Climate Change Adaption, Nuclear Security, Prescription Drugs, Border Security
CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION: DOD Can Improve Infrastructure Planning and Processes to Better Account for Potential Impacts, GAO-14-446: Published: May 30, 2014. Publicly Released: Jun 30, 2014. NUCLEAR SECURITY: NNSA Should Establish a Clear Vision and Path Forward for Its Security Program, GAO-14-208: Published: May 30, 2014. Publicly Released: Jun 30, 2014. PRESCRIPTION DRUGS: Comparison of DOD, Medicaid, and Medicare Part D Retail… Continue Reading
ODNI and DOJ – Declassification of Renewal of Collection Under Section 501 of FISA
“On March 28, 2014, the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) declassified and disclosed publically that the U.S. government had filed an application with the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) seeking renewal of the authority to collect telephony metadata in bulk, and that, on March 28, 2014, the FISC renewed that authority. The DNI also announced… Continue Reading
Armed Conflict in Syria: Overview and U.S. Response
CRS – Armed Conflict in Syria: Overview and U.S. Response, June 24, 2014. “Fighting continues across Syria, pitting government forces and their foreign allies against a range of anti-government insurgents, some of whom also are fighting amongst themselves. Government forces are fighting on multiple fronts and have lost or ceded control of large areas of the country… Continue Reading
GAO Report – Diplomatic Security in Overseas Facilities and Risks
DIPLOMATIC SECURITY: Overseas Facilities May Face Greater Risks Due to Gaps in Security-Related Activities, Standards, and Policies, GAO-14-655: Published: Jun 25, 2014. Publicly Released: Jun 25, 2014: “GAO found that State has not fully developed and implemented a risk management policy for overseas facilities. Furthermore, State’s risk management activities do not operate as a continuous process or… Continue Reading
WaPo – The FBI maintains an 83-page glossary of Internet slang
Caitlin Dewey – “The Internet is full of strange and bewildering neologisms, which anyone but a text-addled teen would struggle to understand. So the fine, taxpayer-funded people of the FBI — apparently not content to trawl Urban Dictionary, like the rest of us — compiled a glossary of Internet slang.” Continue Reading
A closer look at ‘Map of the World’
Sean Lyngaas – “The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency might be the most important U.S. intelligence agency your mother’s never heard of. It has little public name recognition compared to the CIA or the National Security Agency and yet, with a sprawling Springfield, Va., campus and an ample budget, NGA is remaking how the intelligence community processes… Continue Reading
New GAO Reports – Combatting Terrorism, Explosive Detection Canines, Prepositioned Stocks, Private Health Insurance, Transportation Security Info Sharing
COMBATING TERRORISM: U.S. Efforts in Northwest Africa Would Be Strengthened by Enhanced Program Management, GAO-14-518: Published: Jun 24, 2014. Publicly Released: Jun 24, 2014. EXPLOSIVES DETECTION CANINES: TSA Has Taken Steps to Analyze Canine Team Data and Assess the Effectiveness of Passenger Screening Canines, GAO-14-695T: Published: Jun 24, 2014. Publicly Released: Jun 24, 2014. PREPOSITIONED STOCKS: DOD’s Strategic Policy and Implementation… Continue Reading
Iraq: Politics, Governance, and Human Rights
CRS – Iraq: Politics, Governance, and Human Rights, Kenneth Katzman, Specialist in Middle Eastern Affairs. June 13, 2014 “Since the 2011 U.S. military withdrawal from Iraq, sectarian and ethnic divisions have widened, fueling a revival of a Sunni Muslim insurgent challenge to Iraq’s stability. Iraq’s Sunni Arab Muslims resent Shiite political domination and perceived discrimination by the government of… Continue Reading
DHS Releases Second Quadrennial Homeland Security Review
“The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released its second Quadrennial Homeland Security Review (QHSR), taking an important foundational step toward one of Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson’s highest priorities: strengthening Departmental unity of effort. The DHS unity of effort initiative is focused on ensuring that the Department invests and operates in a cohesive, unified… Continue Reading
New GAO Reports – Defense Inventory, Controls Over Processes for Consolidated Financial Statements
DEFENSE INVENTORY: Actions Needed to Improve the Defense Logistics Agency’s Inventory Management, GAO-14-495: Published: Jun 19, 2014. Publicly Released: Jun 19, 2014: “The Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) developed and met goals for reducing on-hand inventory and on-order excess inventory (i.e., already purchased items that may be excess due to subsequent changes in the services’ requirements) and has made… Continue Reading
GAO – Additional Actions Needed to Improve Reporting on and Planning for the Use of Contract Personnel
Civilian Intelligence Community – GAO-14-692T: Published: Jun 18, 2014. Publicly Released: Jun 18, 2014. “Limitations in the intelligence community’s (IC) inventory of contract personnel hinder the ability to determine the extent to which the eight civilian IC elements—the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), and six components within the Departments of… Continue Reading
