Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)

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The Year of Section 702 Reform, Part II: Closing the Gaps and Completing the Modernization of FISA

There are gaps in FISA's coverage that collect American communications outside of any statutory framework and beyond the reach of courts.
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The Year of Section 702 Reform, Part I: Backdoor Searches

Requiring a warrant for U.S. person queries honors the balance between security and liberty struck in the Fourth Amendment and ensures that Section 702 can’t be used to get around…
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A Big Few Weeks for Guantanamo: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

"It’s been an uncharacteristically Guantanamo-news-filled few weeks – some good, some bad, some ugly. Here’s a quick rundown of recent developments."

Rep. Jordan’s Dangerous New Panel is Nothing Like the Church Committee

The 1970’s era probe of executive branch intelligence abuse was honest oversight that spurred improvements benefiting the American people.
Former director of CIA and former commander of U.S. Forces in Afghanistan Gen. David Petraeus gives a speech in front of a federal courthouse. News microphones surround him.

Lessons from Petraeus’s Guilty Plea for Trump’s Classified Docs Investigation

In the retired general's case, the FBI executed a search warrant at his home and seized notebooks allegedly containing classified material.
Acting US Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell whispers in US Vice President Mike Pence's ear as US President Donald Trump speaks during a signing ceremony in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on September 4, 2020. (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

US Democracy’s Survival Requires a More Powerful Response to January 6th

Team Trump's shocking efforts to manipulate government institutions to overturn the 2020 election results echo despots abroad.
Taxi drivers stand by their cars while waiting for passengers in front of the headquarters of Russia's Federal Security Services (FSB) in central Moscow on May 12, 2022. Russia's government has put forward a law to force ride-hailing apps to give the FSB domestic intelligence agency real-time access to their data. (Photo by NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA/AFP via Getty Images)

Defectors Provide Immediate Gratification, But Spies Change History

The CIA’s Instagram post on how to make "secure virtual contact” shows the need for agents and their ability to provide ongoing intelligence.
International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan listens to the President of the Special Peace Jurisdiction Eduardo Cifuentes during a press conference in Bogota, October 27, 2021.

Uncertain Future for the ICC’s Investigation into the CIA Torture Program

The ICC Office of the Prosecutor has "deprioritized" investigation of CIA torture in Afghanistan. But Julian Elderfield, a former attorney in the OTP, says the stated reasons for…

Reexamining the Fundamentals of the Drone Program After the Kabul Strike

"There are certainly unique circumstances to the Kabul strike, but if we miss the bigger lessons, we only invite further tragedy. "
Partially burnt footwear are pictured amid the debris of the house of Ezmarai Ahmadi that was damaged in a US drone strike in the Kwaja Burga neighbourhood of Kabul on September 18, 2021.

Hidden Negligence: Aug. 29 Drone Strike is Just the Tip of the Iceberg

A deep analysis of the broader system in which the August 29 Kabul drone strike is situated, by top expert on civilian casualties and lead author of several Department of Defense…
A relative of Ezmarai Ahmadi on September 18, 2021, inspecting the debris of a destroyed vehicle that was damaged in a US drone strike in the Kwaja Burga neighbourhood of Kabul.

The Overhyping of Over the Horizon

It might represent the only option for the US on terrorist threats from Afghanistan, but it will be brute, imperfect military force.
Two tall greyscale rectangles cast dark shadows representing the Twin Towers. Text reads, “How Perpetual War Has Changed Us: Reflections on the 20th Anniversary of 9/11”

Paradigm Shift: The Consequences of Choosing a War Path, and Leaving It

We owe it to the next generation to grapple now with the consequences of remaining at war -- as well as the consequences of choosing not to be -- lest we find ourselves reflexively…
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