More Intelligence Oversight Advised

Bill a Reaction to Bush Policies
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/29/AR2009062904321.html?hpid=moreheadlines

The House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence has approved legislation intended to strengthen congressional oversight of sensitive intelligence matters, including covert operations.

Under language approved last week in the fiscal 2010 Intelligence Authorization Act, the House panel proposed doing away with provisions that allowed a president to limit disclosure of sensitive intelligence activities to the "Gang of Eight," the term used to identify the House speaker and minority leader, Senate majority and minority leaders, and the chairmen and ranking minority members of the House and Senate intelligence panels.

In its place, the House committee gave each intelligence committee, rather than the president, the legal authority to limit briefings to its own members. The president would be required to provide congressional overseers with "general information" on a covert operation or intelligence activity where there is a potential for loss of life, the outlay of significant funds, or a risk of loss of sources and methods. Briefings would also be required if the disclosure of an operation or activity could cause significant damage to diplomatic relations of the United States.

The limited members who receive such briefings would be permitted to report any objections to the national intelligence director, who must report them to the president in writing within 48 hours.

These changes are in direct reaction to incidents during the Bush administration in which harsh interrogation procedures, which were not considered to be covert operations, were initially reported to only the Gang of Eight and in some cases just the ranking intelligence panel members. In turn, the members who received those briefings were not allowed to disclose what they learned to anyone.