02/03/12: The New York Times reports that The Senate Banking Committee unanimously approved a new regimen of anti-Iran sanctions on Thursday that would for the first time threaten to punish the global financial telecommunications network that nearly all banks rely on to conduct their daily business. The legislation’s banking provision, aimed at forcing the telecommunications network to expel Iranian banks that have already been blacklisted, would be financially catastrophic for Iran if carried out fully, according to proponents and sanctions experts. Expulsion from the network would deny to Iran many billions of dollars in revenue from abroad that is routinely routed into its domestic banking system.
Continue reading "Senate panel approves potentially toughest penalty yet against Iran’s wallet" »
02/02/12: Reuters reports that US lawmakers are steeling for a public battle against the possible transfer of Taliban detainees out of Guantanamo Bay prison, a key step in the Obama administration's bid to broker a peace deal ending the war in Afghanistan. Congressional opposition is gaining steam, especially among Republicans but also among some senior Democrats, to the potential transfer to Qatar of five senior Taliban prisoners, a good-faith move that could set the stage for eventual political talks between the Taliban and Afghan government.
Continue reading "Lawmakers warn of outcry against Taliban transfer" »
01/31/12: The New York Times reports that the nation’s top intelligence official said on Tuesday that continued pressure from the United States and its allies will likely reduce Al Qaeda’s core leadership in Pakistan to “largely symbolic importance” over the next two to three years as the terrorist organization fragments into more regionally focused groups and homegrown extremists. The assessment by the official, James R. Clapper, the director of national intelligence, was contained in prepared remarks to the Senate Intelligence Committee at the panel’s annual hearing to review global threats to the United States.
Continue reading "Intelligence chief sees Al Qaeda likely to continue fragmenting" »
01/22/12: The Voice of America reports that the United States is ready to lift economic sanctions against Burma if the country’s civilian government presses ahead on political reforms including free and fair elections this April. The call was made by a visiting delegation of senior US senators, led by Senators John McCain and Joseph Lieberman, who made a stop in Bangkok on their way to Burma. Before the United States makes a final decision, the senators said they will also look to democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.
Continue reading "US Senators signal conditional support for lifting Burma sanctions" »
01/20/12: The Washington Post reports that Congress is moving closer to taking up comprehensive cybersecurity legislation, and a Senate aide confirmed this week that Majority Leader Harry Reid will bring a package to the floor before President’s Day. Meanwhile, eight former senior government officials sent a letter this week to Reid and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, urging the Senate to approve legislation to better protect the nation’s critical computer networks from attack. A senior aide to Reid, Tommy Ross, said that legislation could be on the floor as early as next week.
Continue reading "Senate set to take up major cyber legislation" »
11/04/11: The Washington Times reports that the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee is intervening with a Pentagon investigator to influence the final wording of a report that exonerates George W. Bush-era officials who gave war briefings to retired military TV and radio commentators. Senator Carl Levin, Michigan Democrat, has tried for three years to convince federal investigators that the briefing program violated government rules and that some of the retired officers turned analysts received preferential treatment for Pentagon contracts.
Continue reading "Senator pushes for last word on Bush-era war briefings" »
10/29/11: The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports that a bipartisan group of lawmakers is asking FBI Director Robert Mueller and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton to put Palestinians released from prison in a swap for an Israeli soldier on the terrorist watch list. In a letter this week to Mueller and Clinton, the lawmakers said the Palestinians who were convicted on various terrorism charges should not be allowed to enter the United States.
Continue reading "Lawmakers press US officials to put Palestinians released in Israeli swap on terror list" »
09/22/11: The Washington Post reports that Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano says the government’s main disaster aid account is “running on fumes” and could be tapped out by early next week. Napolitano says she’s counting on Congress to provide more aid money because without the additional relief dollars, there will be delays in getting disaster projects approved. She wouldn’t say what arrangements the Federal Emergency Management Agency has made to prepare in the event the money runs out.
Continue reading "Homeland security chief says disaster aid fund ‘running on fumes,’ could be empty next week" »
09/22/11: The New York Times reports that two United States senators on the Senate Intelligence Committee have accused the Justice Department of making misleading statements about the legal justification of secret domestic surveillance activities that the government is apparently carrying out under the Patriot Act. The lawmakers — Ron Wyden of Oregon and Mark Udall of Colorado — sent a letter to Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. calling for him to “correct the public record” and to ensure that future department statements about the authority the government believes is conveyed by the surveillance law would not be misleading.
Continue reading "Public said to be misled on use of the Patriot Act" »
07/27/11: CNN reports that President Barack Obama has signed into law Tuesday legislation creating a new two-year term for FBI Director Robert Mueller beginning on August 3. The House late Monday approved the legislation allowing a special term designed to keep Mueller in his post until 2013. His 10-year term expires August 2, but Obama asked Mueller to stay on to provide continuity for the White House national security team.
Continue reading "Obama signs 2-year extension to Mueller's FBI tenure" »
Commentary: Questions for the intelligence community
01/31/12: The Washington Post suggests that there are some questions that members of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence should ask the heads of the intelligence community when the panel meets Tuesday morning for Congress’ first public assessment in 2012 of worldwide threats. Afghanistan is the only country where substantial numbers of US forces are fighting. President Obama and the NATO coalition have set 2014 as the date for all foreign combat forces to withdraw and the Afghan army and police to take over security responsibilities.
January 31, 2012 at 08:41 AM in Congress, Intelligence, Commentary / Opinion | Permalink