The speech by President Barack Obama, which touched upon perpetual war, his authority to carry out drone strikes, the efficacy of drones, closing Guantanamo Bay prison, adhering to the rule of law when fighting terrorism and even national security leaks was wide-ranging and bewildering. It was longer than the “State of the Union” address he [...]

(update 1 & 2) Ahead of a major speech on counterterrorism policies tomorrow, the administration of President Barack Obama has officially declassified information related to drone strikes against four American citizens and also acknowledged for the first time that they were killed by the United States. A letter sent to members of the Senate Judiciary [...]

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has received documents in response to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request that provide details on FBI and Justice Department policies, which appear to suggest the federal authorities can read emails without obtaining a warrant. The FBI provided a copy of a 2012 Domestic Investigations and Operations Guide [...]

CIA director John Brennan has appointed someone to fill the position of National Clandestine Service (NCS) director. The individual, however, is apparently going to keep his undercover status. First, a key aspect of this news is the fact that the person appointed is not the woman, who had been serving as the acting director of [...]

This week, another pretrial hearing is taking place at Fort Meade in the court martial of Pfc. Bradley Manning, the soldier who the United States military is prosecuting for disclosing information to WikiLeaks. It begins today and will take place over a period of at least two days. Except, for this hearing, the public will [...]

An annual report to the United States Senate by the Justice Department shows the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court did not deny one single request made to the court by federal law enforcement. All applications to conduct electronic surveillance or “physical searches for foreign intelligence purposes” were granted. The report, signed off on by Principal Deputy [...]

A military appeals court has decided journalists and media organizations in a lawsuit being brought by the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) do not have standing to challenge the lack of access to court records in the court martial of Pfc. Bradley Manning, the soldier being prosecuted by the military for disclosing information to WikiLeaks. [...]

A federal appeals court in Washington, DC, rebuffed a clear attempt by the United States Justice Department to further pervert the Freedom of Information Act process. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) sued the Federal Election Commission (FEC) on May 24, 2011, when it failed to produce documents on individuals at the FEC, [...]

One week before John Brennan assumed office as CIA director, a woman was put in charge of the CIA’s clandestine service. It was the first time in the history of the agency that a female officer was running the agency. But, according to the Washington Post, the officer was one of two CIA officers, who signed [...]

National Security Agency whistleblower Thomas Drake delivered a speech at the National Press Club luncheon on March 15. He addressed the “long shadow of government secrecy” that increasingly “obscures the view of democracy in our constitutional republic or what’s left of it.” Video of the entire speech given during the luncheon appears at the top [...]