Intelligence Agencies
Since the attacks on our country on September 11, 2001, more peoplehave become aware of the need for our government to gather intelligenceregarding what our enemies might be planning. This need has gotten evenmore attention in recent days as it has become apparent that those whoattacked us before may well intend to attempt it again. Gathering suchinformation has always been a function of virtually every country'sgovernment. Most Americans think the Central Intelligence Agency, or theCIA, is the agency the United States uses for intelligence-gathering.However, several other government agencies play roles as well. Some ofthem gather a broad range of types of information while others are morespecialized. This wide range of agencies gathering information is onereason some think such agencies should have a central place where all thedifferent kinds of information can be analyzed. In addition to the CIA, the National Security Agency (NSA), theNational Reconnaissance Office (NRO) and the National Imagery and Mappingagency (NIMA) all play prominent roles in intelligence-gathering(Richelson, 1999). In addition, however, the Department of Defense,
Others are concerned about the apparent failure ofagencies to share information with each other and significant gaps inknowledge in spite of all the many efforts to make that knowledge ascomplete as possible (Richelson, 1999). DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY INTELLIGENCE The Department of Energy Intelligence has its roots in the dawn of thenuclear Age. The State Department prepares a "Morning Summary" everyday of new and significant information gathered, and often works with otheragencies to further develop data (Richelson, 1999). DRUG ENFORCEMENT ADMINISTRATION The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which gathers informationboth inside of and outside of the United States, is part of the Departmentof Justice, just as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is(Richelson, 1999). The heart of this activity was the establishment of the ForeignIntelligence Surveillance Court (FISC), which rules on whether enoughevidence exists to identify a person as a probably foreign agent. The different agencies each lookat the information they gather in different ways, and often have markedlydifferent ways of collecting what they find important (Richelson, 1999), socombining resources when called for, for the benefit of national security,might allow each agency to do what it does best but then combine their datawith other data collected in a way that might bring fresh insights ourgovernment could use effectively in its war on terror. rtment of State, the Drug EnforcementAdministration, the Department of Treasury, and the Department of EnergyIntelligence all gather information about events outside the boundaries ofthe United States that can play an important role in assessing outsidethreats to our country. CONCERNS While most Americans realize that we need accurate and timelyinformation about outside threats, many have concerns as well. Inaddition to gathering information, this department works in counter-intelligence, particularly regarding nuclear laboratories (Richelson,1999). This organization runs no clandestine operations, but it receivesinformation through embassies in other countries, and plays a supervisoryrole, making sure that CIA activities do not violate foreign policy(Richelson, 1999). The FISCcan then authorize an agency to keep that person under surveillance(Breglio, 2003). They cooperate and share information with government agenciesat all levels as well as other countries (Richelson, 1999). To launder money is to hide its illegal origin. They focus on drug trafficking, including determiningwhere drugs are produced and what paths they take prior to entry into theUnited States. The recentnews about military interrogators apparently going too far in their effortsto get prisoners to cooperate in interrogations reminds people thatclandestine operations and other intelligence activities can violatesociety's standards.
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Acceptance Essays
