SECRECY NEWS
from the FAS Project on Government Secrecy
Volume 2018, Issue No. 7
January 30, 2018Secrecy News Blog: https://fas.org/blogs/secrecy/
BAD FAITH AT THE HOUSE INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE
The House Intelligence Committee voted yesterday to invoke a provision of committee rules to authorize the release of a classified memo that is said to be critical of the FBI and its role in investigating Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election.
That provision -- Rule X of the Rules of the House of Representatives, section 11(g)(1) -- has never been successfully employed before. Strictly speaking, it would not result in "declassification" of classified information, which is an executive branch function, but it would authorize its public disclosure anyway:
http://clerk.house.gov/legislative/house-rules.pdf
Open government advocates have periodically urged Congress to assert itself in this way in order to overcome the classification of important records they believed were improperly withheld. The idea was briefly considered by some intelligence committee members in connection with the "28 pages" that were initially withheld from the report of the congressional joint inquiry into 9/11, and in connection with the Senate Intelligence Committee report on CIA interrogation practices.Nothing herein shall be construed to prevent the select committee from publicly disclosing classified information in a case in which it determines that national interest in the disclosure of classified information clearly outweighs any infringement on the privacy of a person.
(g)(1) The select committee may disclose publicly any information in its possession after a determination by the select committee that the public interest would be served by such disclosure. With respect to the disclosure of information for which this paragraph requires action by the select committee--
(A) the select committee shall meet to vote on the matter within five days after a member of the select committee requests a vote; and
(B) a member of the select committee may not make such a disclosure before a vote by the select committee on the matter, or after a vote by the select committee on the matter except in accordance with this paragraph.
(2)(A) In a case in which the select committee votes to disclose publicly any information that has been classified under established security procedures, that has been submitted to it by the executive branch, and that the executive branch requests be kept secret, the select committee shall notify the President of such vote.
(B) The select committee may disclose publicly such information after the expiration of a five-day period following the day on which notice of the vote to disclose is transmitted to the President unless, before the expiration of the five-day period, the President, personally in writing, notifies the select committee that the President objects to the disclosure of such information, provides reasons therefor, and certifies that the threat to the national interest of the United States posed by the disclosure is of such gravity that it outweighs any public interest in the disclosure.
(C) If the President, personally in writing, notifies the select committee of objections to the disclosure of information as provided in subdivision (B), the select committee may, by majority vote, refer the question of the disclosure of such information, with a recommendation thereon, to the House. The select committee may not publicly disclose such information without leave of the House.
But prior to yesterday's vote, "It does not appear that either house has invoked its procedure for disclosing classified information," wrote Jennifer K. Elsea of the Congressional Research Service.
https://fas.org/sgp/crs/secrecy/RS21900.pdf
So is this a victory for open government? Or is it a cynical manipulation of congressional rules?
One indication that House Intelligence Committee Republicans are acting in bad faith is that they voted in favor of public disclosure of their own memo, but voted against public disclosure of the dissenting memo prepared by Committee Democrats.
"We raised, of course, the transparently political objective behind this, which is to allow the majority to set a certain narrative for a week or so," said Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA). But to no avail.
https://democrats-intelligence.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=342
Congressional oversight of intelligence has never been immaculately neutral and above the fray. The Senate Intelligence Committee memorably split along partisan lines in its oversight of CIA interrogation. But when the Democratic majority under Sen. Feinstein released its critical findings, it also released a harsh rebuttal by Committee Republicans. Under House Intelligence Committee chairman Rep. Devin Nunes, even that minimal level of bipartisan cooperation has been abandoned.
The U.S. State Department provided crime scene investigation (CSI) equipment to Palestinian security forces to encourage a "move away from a confession-based investigation process," according to a 2016 report to Congress that was recently released under the Freedom of Information Act.
See U.S. Assistance for Palestinian Security Forces and Benchmarks for Palestinian Security Assistance Funds, FY 2016 report to Congress, US Department of State.
https://fas.org/irp/world/palestine/fy16-assistance.pdf
The report provides a snapshot of US security assistance to the Palestinian Authority (PA) in March-August 2016, when the US provided training as well as technical support to enhance the quality and professionalism of Palestinian security practices. The report also describes steps taken by the State Department to ensure that any such assistance would not be diverted to unauthorized purposes.
U.S. support for PA security forces and the criminal justice sector in the West Bank has averaged around $100 million since 2008, according to the Congressional Research Service, though the amount has declined in recent years.
This funding "has been given to train, reform, advise, house, and provide nonlethal equipment for PA civil security forces in the West Bank loyal to President Abbas. This aid is aimed at countering militants from organizations such as Hamas and Palestine Islamic Jihad-Shaqaqi Faction, and establishing the rule of law for an expected Palestinian state." See U.S. Foreign Aid to the Palestinians by Jim Zanotti, Congressional Research Service, December 16, 2016:
https://fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/RS22967.pdf
Prior background on the origins of US-Palestinian cooperation was presented by CRS in U.S. Security Assistance to the Palestinian Authority, January 8, 2010.
https://fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/R40664.pdf
Some Palestinian critics object to the US security assistance program as an improper intervention in Palestinian politics that effectively strengthens Israeli occupation of the West Bank. See How US security aid to PA sustains Israel's occupation by Alaa Tartir, Al Jazeera, December 2, 2016.
http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2016/11/security-aid-pa-sustains-israel-occupation-161103120213593.html
The current state of implementation of the Freedom of Information Act at the State Department is such that even a request for a specified unclassified document -- such as the 2016 report to Congress on security assistance to the Palestinian Authority -- took nearly two years to fulfill.
AIR CARGO SECURITY, & MORE FROM CRS
The potential risks associated with air cargo on domestic and international flights, and the challenges involved in assessing and addressing them, are discussed in a new report from the Congressional Research Service. See Security of Air Cargo Shipments, Operations, and Facilities, January 24, 2018:
https://fas.org/sgp/crs/homesec/R45082.pdf
Other new and updated reports from the Congressional Research Service include the following.
Federal Research and Development Funding: FY2018, updated January 25, 2018:
https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R44888.pdf
Banking Law: An Overview of Federal Preemption in the Dual Banking System, January 23, 2018:
https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R45081.pdf
Economic Impact of Infrastructure Investment, updated January 24, 2018:
https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R44896.pdf
EPA's Methane Regulations: Legal Overview, updated January 24, 2018:
https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R44615.pdf
The Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS): An Overview, updated January 24, 2018:
https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R43325.pdf
The United Arab Emirates (UAE): Issues for U.S. Policy, updated January 25, 2018:
https://fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/RS21852.pdf
China-U.S. Trade Issues, updated January 23, 2018:
https://fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL33536.pdf
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Secrecy News is written by Steven Aftergood and published by the Federation of American Scientists.
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