Military Officer

The secretary of defense, who heads the Department of Defense, comes second in power over the military. The first and most important job of the secretary of defense is to keep the country protected from terrorist attacks. We often take for granted the security of our nation, but there are people working around the clock in order to keep the country safe. Next, the department of defense also locates and punishes any terrorists who attack which is a difficult and dangerous task. As the secretary of defense, it is his or her duty to ensure that each branch in the United States military is well trained and prepared for any obstacle that they may face whether it be planned or unforeseen. The secretary of defense also ensures that these men and women in the armed forces are well-equipped to do their jobs (Ruffin). There seems to be a high failure rate among those who have served as the secretary of defense. Are these secretaries actually failing at their job, or are they reaching toward the impossible goal of trying to keep each and every American citizen safe from terrorist attacks on our nation? Many of these secretaries are let go by the president due to a lack of confidence in them (Stevenson). The ideal secretary of defense would need to be skilled in politics, leadership, relationships, and many other areas, but someone who is exceptional in all areas would be nearly impossible to find. Because perfecting the position as secretary of defense is nearly impossible since the safety of the entire nation is in their hands, we often see this resulting in disappointment toward the

Congress built upon the reforms of the 1970s by passing the Intelligence Oversight Act in 1980. This Act was an amendment to the Hughes-Ryan Act and obligated the IC to report covert actions to both the SSCI and the HPSCI prior to their implementation, unlike the ambiguous previous requirement of a timely manner. The Intelligence Oversight Act was noteworthy in that it constrained the intelligence community more than any previous legislation (Riley 2010). The two biggest shortfalls I see to the system is the number of contributors there are to the system on such a large scale. When I think about all of the redundancy built within the system, I think about all of the possible breakdown in communications that could take place. The second shortfall I see is the legislative leverage that is held over the Intelligence community. I personally believe this to be a mistake because this power could be held in a negative manner and to gain a political stance or agenda. The Congress can withhold money and resources, can leak information to the media and which could cause a mission or operation to

In this paper the subject of interest is the role of congress in the oversight of strategic intelligence, or the lack there of. Does congress have a proper role in the oversight of strategic intelligence? If not what should the proper role be? These are the questions best answered by looking at the history of congressional over sight and where it is at today. The next few pages will cover the topics above and shed light on what it is congress calls oversight.

The study of George Tenet’s actions leading up to the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan leaves little doubt about the dysfunction within our government from the appointment of officials to the decision making process itself. Tenet was appointed by President Clinton as Director of the Intelligence (DCI) in 1997, just 19 months after becoming deputy to DCI. It was noted that Tenet had never managed a large organization, worked as an intelligence officer or serviced in the military, all of which would have provided the experience and expertise needed

A great post covering the cons and pros of hiring contractors in intelligence community. After 9/11 attacks, the need to subject matter experts increased a lot to collect, process and analyze intelligence, that lead to hire a lot of contractors to do the job. Any they know how to do it, and how to train others on it because of the military background of most of the contractors. One point about the contractors they can be used in intelligence community and train others in their managerial skills and technical expertise. The infrastructure of intelligence community need a lot of contractors to keep all these equipment's running and protected, also to protect the facilities and personnel's. Redundancy is the other issue because of a

The position of Director of National Intelligence (DNI) was created under the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (IRTPA). The position of DNI replaced the Director of the Central Intelligence (DCI) as the senior intelligence official, head of the intelligence community’s 16 agencies, and principal intelligence advisor to the President of the United States (POTUS) and the National Security Council (NSC). The IRTPA of 2004, also established the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) as an independent agency to assist the DNI. The ODNI 's goal is to effectively integrate foreign, military and domestic intelligence in defense of the homeland and of United States interests abroad.

Congress has for a long time has tried in various ways to oversee the intelligence community which have shown to be sometime controversial, and a very difficult responsibility. What make this task so hard is the secrecy and sensitivity intelligence information finding, the sources, and the methods in which the information is obtain. Congressional oversight has evolved since the mid-1970s and a lot more since the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center. The critics about Congressional oversight by some as being inadequate, ineffective, or worse, while at the same time proposal that was made in the 9/11 commission report was met with challenges from within the Legislature Branch and from the Executive Branch

Allow me to introduce you to the soldier that the President chose to carry out this crucial task. Colonel Andrew Summers Rowen was charged with this task. The President did do his due diligence prior to selecting Colonel Andrews and the few things that came to mind while reading about this soldier. Im sure where the reasons why the Bureau of Military Intelligence recommended the Colonel. The things that came to mind when reading about the Colonel in this essay was dependability, discipline, and courage.

The intelligence oversight committee has an immense role in ensuring budgets and laws are addressed according to policies and ensuring that national security is at the forefront of their concerns. These responsibilities must be diligently carried out and cared for by the Executive Branch. Congress must support the military and its various operations, worldwide. Security is at the highest priority of importance to the United States (Berkowitz, 1989). Before service members can go out into an area of responsibility to win hearts and minds, the government must assist in win the hearts and minds of our United States service members.

The National Security Act of 1947 centralized command and promoted intelligence sharing between institutions by establishing a Secretary of Defense, Joint Chiefs of Staff, Director of Central Intelligence, and NSC. The President, Secretary of State, Secretary of Defense, Secretary of the Army, Secretary of the Navy, Secretary of the Air Force, and Chairman of the National Security Resources Board composed the original statutory members of the NSC. The President was also authorized to designate other specified officials to the NSC. The NSC staff, which is separate from “the Council,” comprises politically appointed individuals and civil servants organized in specialized directorates. The primary function of the NSC is to advise the President on “domestic, foreign, and military policies relating to the national security.” The NSC acts as a coordinator between departments and agencies across government, and relies on accurate and insightful reports from them to develop national security policy recommendations for the President. The NSC is unique because it both consumes intelligence to make recommendations to the President, and guides intelligence activities by coordinating policies across government.

The Director of National Intelligence, appointed by the Senate, works closely with the president. The DNI is to effectively integrate all national and homeland security intelligence in defense of the homeland and in support of the United States National security interests.

Webster’s dictionary defines the word profession as a type of job that requires special education, training, or skill. Many Soldiers would not consider the Army as a profession but a way of life. Some think the word profession belongs to everyday jobs like a plumber, mechanic, or doctor. Dr. Don M. Snider stated “the Army is a profession because of the expert work it produces, because the people in the Army develop themselves to be professionals, and because the Army certifies them as such” (Snider, D. M. 2008). In October 2010, the Secretary of the Army directed the Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) to lead an Army wide assessment of the state of the Army Profession. We have been at war as a Country for over a decade and the Army

Badge and credentials, and firearms are issued to federal agents or law enforcement officers to conduct official business and protect themselves and others. Agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), the Army’s Criminal Investigation Division (CID), and many other federal agencies work in this capacity of carrying firearms, badge and credentials without the associated stigma and constraints that counterintelligence suffer from. Very few Army counterintelligence offices or entities function in the same manner as our civilian counterparts. Therefore, the question is why the Counterintelligence Corp is not working in the same capacity and function as our civilian law enforcement counterparts regarding

George Tenet was the director of the central Intelligence Agency from 1997 to 2004; it was a very trying time for the Clinton and Bush administration. Tenet would cover many things in his career and that would have a major impact on the terrorist attacks of September 11 and U.S. invasion of Iraq. There were many intelligence directors that sever before him, but none that were more establish or had a drive for controversy. During George Tenet career, he played a big role in many events, such as invasion of Iraq and reorganization of the nation’s intelligence. Tenet involvement with the White House decision making, intelligence priorities, and his own agency kept him occupied

intelligence, he briefs the President, has authority to develop the budget for the national intelligence effort and manage appropriations made by Congress, and, to some extent, can transfer personnel and funds from one agency to another.3 I believe that the creation of the DNI position had been on the table for a few years, but the intelligence failures of communication between the agencies and being able to connect the dots to see the events leading up to 9/11 was the last drop in the bucket. I do not think that this organization has worked out all there kinks along with the other organizations in the Intelligence Community completely being open with them, however, I do feel that their roles and placement in the chain is a much needed