Government Executive September 2012 : Page 29
the Lid In Lifting National Intelligence Director James Clapper must blend 16 agencies into a coherent community. By Charles S. Clark the record hot summer of 2012, the intel-ligence community was feeling a different kind of heat. Rocked by outrage over leaks to the press, top officials were scrambling to tighten controls on classified information. Media outlets had published eye-opening stories dissecting the government’s successes in taking out al Qaeda terrorists and allegedly launching a computer virus against Iran to slow its efforts to develop nuclear weapons. The disclosure of behind-the-scenes details left lawmakers howling mad. Republicans accused the Obama administration of endangering intelligence and military operations to garner positive publicity, which White House officials vehemently denied. Lawmakers proposed legislation to require intelligence agencies to notify Congress when they give sensitive news interviews. From his office at the Liberty Crossing complex in McLean, Va., James Clapper, in his second year as director of the Office of National Intelligence, responded to the extent of his powers. He mandated that the polygraph for intelligence employees include a question about unauthorized disclosure of classified information. And he asked the intelligence community inspector general to probe unauthorized disclosures in cases where the Justice Department declines prosecution. “These efforts will reinforce our professional values by sending a strong message that intelligence Illustration by Daniel Hertzberg september 2012 | government ex ecutive 29
Publication List
Using a screen reader? Click Here