Senate Select Committee Hearing : FOIA - Part 2
Senate Select Committee Hearing: FOIA - Part 2
ACLU lawyers Mark Lynch and Allan Adler sitting at the witness table, Lynch in the middle of giving his statement, pointing out the philosophic concern of how oversight over government institutions should proceed in a democracy; adult Caucasian males and females in BG. Lynch continues talking about a "perception problem" where foreign sources and foreign service are hesitant to provide information to the U.S. intelligence services. He references the testimony provided by Admiral Bobby Ray Inman stating that in the past two months, there was a country that did not want to share information with the U.S. because they were afraid it would be reported in the newspaper. While FOIA is one way that could happen, there are multiple ways CIA information can find its way to a newspaper.
Senate Select Committee Hearing: FOIA - Part 2
ACLU lawyers Mark Lynch and Allan Adler seated at witness table, continues his statement; adult Caucasian males and females in BG. Lynch states that intelligence is meant to inform policymakers, which are spread wide across the executive branch, and the people who get information are often political people; referencing a State Department official who, under the current title of Director of Political and Military Affairs, previously worked as a reporter for the New York Times. People who see intelligence information while working for the government are apt to go into different careers after their government work. That may make foreign governments hesitate to share information. Another reason is leaks. Information, for a variety of reasons, does leak into the press. Another reason could be lapses in security, referencing a story where a low level CIA official was able to walk out the door with a manual for a classified satellite.
Senate Select Committee Hearing: FOIA - Part 2
ACLU lawyer Mark Lynch continues his statement, seated with colleague Allan Adler at witness table; adult Caucasian males and females in BG. Lynch states there are several problems and reasons why foreign government and services are hesitant to share information with the U.S., and no one has dealt with these problems in a decisive way. Lynch says the U.S. government will not turn into the Russian government, nor will there be suppression of press, unless a story threatens the national security of the nation. Former CIA officials will continue to write memoirs, which are reviewed in the same manner as a FOI request is. Lynch: "And hopefully we will see an improvement in the security practices of the intelligence community, but unless we adopt really draconian Bolshevik-type security practices, there is always going to be some risk that there will be problems... the CIA has never lost a FOIA case concerning classified information...".
Senate Select Committee Hearing: FOIA - Part 2
Empty chairs behind the dais, only Senator and Committee Chairman Barry Goldwater (R-AZ) seated as adult Caucasian male aides communicate with one another; ACLU lawyer Mark Lynch, continues his statement, making the case that even with the FOIA, the CIA has always won cases where they feel they cannot publicly disclose sensitive information. Therefore, this perception that the FOIA is a danger to intelligence services and sensitive materials needs to be put into perspective. Lynch: "There really are far many more factors, far more important factors, far more weighty factors that would lead a foreign service or a foreign source to decline to cooperate with the CIA than the Freedom of Information Act." Lynch then proceeds to address another concern stemming from the testimony of Admiral Bobby Ray Inman: diversion of agency resources. Lynch believes this problem can be addressed through a review of agency administrative practices; ACLU lawyer Allan Adler seated next to Lynch.
Senate Select Committee Hearing: FOIA - Part 2
ACLU lawyers Mark Lynch and Allan Adler sitting at witness table; Lynch continuing his statement, addressing the last critique from Admiral Bobby Ray Inman's testimony: that the FOIA is fundamentally inconsistent with an intelligence agency. Admiral Inman does recognize the need for oversight, but that it should be limited to the current House and Senate Committees. Lynch calls this a "novel idea" where no oversight of an executive agency by the press or the public is appropriate. This is a fundamental and philosophic difference between Inman and the ACLU. Historically, Congressional oversight has had ebbs and flows in performance, good and not good. Lynch believes that having a Congressional committee be the only oversight over an agency, in a democracy, is a dangerous idea. Lynch is thankful that the CIA is not suggesting that they should be exempt from the Privacy Act, but notes the application of that act will have some of the same disadvantages as the FOIA.
Senate Select Committee Hearing: FOIA - Part 2
U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye (D-HI) sitting behind dais as the camera pans right to show Sens. Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D-NY), Barry Goldwater (R-AZ), and David Durenberger (R-MN) along with adult Caucasian male aides; ACLU lawyer Mark Lynch, off camera, speaking on the 7(A) exemption under FOIA that is afforded to the FBI, but not the CIA, as they are not a law enforcement agency. He uses that as an example where some adjustments can be made.
Senate Select Committee Hearing: FOIA - Part 2
U.S. Senator and Committee Chairman Barry Goldwater (R-AZ) tries to clarify that the reason for the hearing is not to "blow something clear out of the water", but to bring "some order out of it", as he speaks to ACLU lawyers Mark Lynch and Allan Adler, off camera; adult Caucasian male sitting in BG. When the FOIA was passed, there was no disagreement, but over time the intelligence services began finding problems with it. Goldwater states the committee's purpose is not just to watch over the intelligence services, but to also listen to them and help. In this case, they have their feelings, expressed by Admiral Bobby Ray Inman's testimony, contrary to the feelings of the ACLU. The committee has to find the middle ground. Goldwater states that he is not even in favor of having an Intelligence Oversight Committee because intelligence is needed to learn about our enemies for the sake or our own peace. However, their testimony has been well taken and will be given every consideration.
Senate Select Committee Hearing: FOIA - Part 2
U.S. Senator and Chairman of the Committee Barry Goldwater (R-AZ) recognizes Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-HI), but Inouye states he only recently arrived from a reconciliation conference, and will read the transcripts first. Goldwater lets Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D-NY) proceed. Sen. Moynihan jokes that Sen. Goldwater says things sometimes that need to be revised. That deep down in his core, he does believe in the need for an intelligence oversight committee. Moynihan describes the unique nature of U.S. intelligence agencies: that they are publicly listed, shown on public maps, and there are directions to headquarters. Sen. Goldwater does not think they should be, and Sen. Moynihan says he doesn't have to, but "you would be hard pressed in Paris to find the building that says French Central Intelligence Agency". Sen. Moynihan continues to note the unique settings and openness the U.S. intelligence agencies operate in, ones that foreign governments would not tolerate.