U. S. Senate Judiciary Committee
Holds blockbuster oversight hearing with FBI Director Robert Mueller
May 2nd, 2006, Washington D.C. – Sen. Arlen Specter (R. – Pa.), as chair of the committee charged with oversight of the nation’s “principal investigative agency of the United States” made several statements today along with other senators from both Republican and Democratic parties that have been the subject to challenges by several commentators and news outlets. The senator also discussed later in the same hearing his concern of the FBI’s interpretation of the Valerie Plame controversy which lead to the contempt charge and jailing of New York Times reporter Judith Miller and the “arrest of reporters and their newspapers.”
Commentary is not unusual when it comes to this sort of hearing – it is one of the few regularly scheduled hearings available to the public – at – large where the elected legislators and the chief law enforcement officers meet to discuss “oversight” in open meeting.
Sen. Specter started the meeting with a reading of a list of questions of interest to the oversight committee and raised his questions relating to the use of classified information to “prosecute reporters.” Senator Edward Kennedy (D. – Mass.) described the history of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) and asked how the FBI was reacting to the new conditions the government agency was operating in the 21st century. Specter said that the balance of respecting the civil liberties of citizens and waging the “war on terrorism” since 9/11 is being “seriously challenged.”
Specter brought up the new $305 million contract with Lockheed Martin for technological “acquisition” as reported in the March 2006 GAO report on information sharing between agencies, i.e. the development of new computerization programs “legislating a new level of bureaucracy” according to the senator.
Director Mueller (official transcript of his speech available here) discussed the creation of Field Intelligence Groups (FIGS) which increased “from 617 to 995” that transmitted over 20,000 analysis reports throughout the law enforcement networks.
Mueller did point out the wildly popular program of busting bigshots as, “[P]ublic corruption is the top criminal priority for the FBI. Over the last two years, our investigations have led to the conviction of over 1,000 government employees involved in corrupt activities, to include 177 federal officials, 158 state officials, 360 local officials, and more than 365 police officers.”
Mueller favorably described how the “PATRIOT Act [has] broken down the walls” between the different intelligence groups and had streamlined information sharing between them. Critics both inside and outside law enforcement have disagreed in the past.
Specter discussed on an “informal basis” the “prosecution of newspaper or newspaper reporters.” He cited statutes “18 USC 798 and 50 USC 421” and requested Mueller’s interpretation of the applicability of prosecuting those disseminating classified information under those laws. Mueller stated that he had learned of Specter’s request while “arriving” at the meeting and wasn’t prepared to interpret their applicability.
Specter said that a recent New York Times article appearing “the other day” has caused “concern.” Specter then brought up reports about recent FBI inquiries into columnist Jack Anderson’s files.
Senator Edward Kennedy brought up the “bad apple” in New York which was later referred to by name in news reports as Lindley DeVecchio a 33 year veteran including 11 years as a supervisor who was charged in March with four counts of second degree murder.
Senator Chuck Grassley (R – Iowa) in his opening statement laid into the director with:
“In March, a New York grand jury indicted retired FBI agent Lin DeVecchio on four counts of murder. DeVecchio allegedly accepted bribes from a mob boss and supplied him with inside information that led to the deaths of at least four people. This case sounds disturbingly familiar. The allegations are similar to those that surfaced a few years ago out of the Boston office, which led to two retired FBI agents being charged with crimes involving collusion with their high-level mafia informants. Current and former FBI officials have been publicly raising money for DeVecchio’s legal defense and more than forty agents appeared at his bond hearing to show support. According to the website maintained by DeVecchio’s supporters in the FBI, the agents helped post a one million dollar bond to secure his release, and after the hearing, the agents surrounded DeVecchio ‘in a human blanket’ as he left the courtroom so that he could not be questioned by reporters. One agent wrote, ‘it might even be said that a few reporters received a few body checks out on the sidewalk” and that he ‘was never prouder to be an FBI Agent.’” (Grassley’s complete official statement which details other perceived problems with the FBI is here.)
List of public “business” is extensive.
The hearing was conducted with Director Mueller under oath and covered a wide array of subjects; from the publicized allegations of unwarranted surveillance and surreptitious investigations of religious peace and anti – war organizations, newspaper reporters and publishers being investigated (and in Judith Miller’s example, jailed for 85 days) for their use of confidential sources; national security “watch” lists, new confidential informant guidelines, integration of the Sentinel computer system throughout the FBI (and according to a recent GAO finding of “unclear” funding sources to super defense contractor Lockheed Martin).
Sen. Patrick Leahy (D. – Vt.) questioned Director Mueller about the “billions of dollars spent to classify information” some that he noted was being re – classified after being previously cleared and posted on “government web sites.”
Both senators, Leahy and Specter, raised concerns about recent news stories concerning the late columnist Jack Anderson’s files. Anderson family members have been in contact with Sen. Chuck Grassley (R. – Ia.) and others complaining that FBI agents used questionable “investigative techniques.” Outrage apparently over FBI agents “interviews” using "trickery" to gain the signature of Anderson’s surviving 79 – year – old widow allowing them access and custody of the decedent’s reported 200 boxes of professional files.
Sen. Leahy brought up the criticisms of others that the reason the FBI was seeking Anderson’s files was to prevent disclosure of aspects of the late Director J. Edgar Hoover’s “personal life – style.”
Leahy then read from a disclosed “FBI report” concerning surveillance on a “catholic peace organization” in Pittsburgh, Pa. the Thomas Merton Center for Peace and Social Justice, the report was dated months “before the invasion of Iraq”.
He then said, “A Freedom of Information Act lawsuit recently filed by the ACLU has also revealed communications between the FBI and other law enforcement agencies about the surveillance of several other domestic peace groups. The FBI cannot simply dismiss these very serious concerns by citing Inspector General Fine’s recent report on the Bureau’s conduct during the 2004 nation political conventions. That report does not address these other incidents of domestic surveillance. According to the documents obtained in that lawsuit, these are not isolated events. The documents show that the FBI has infiltrated political, environmental, antiwar and faith-based groups elsewhere across the country.” [Leahy’s complete official statement is here.]
Mueller replied, “to my knowledge we have not surveilled the Quakers, to my knowledge I have not heard about that group you talked about, uh, the grannies.” The “Raging Grannies” was most recently represented by a group of 18 women recently acquitted in a New York City court for blocking a sidewalk in front of a military recruiter’s office. The Raging Grannies do have extensive networks, after all everybody has a grandmother, or aged matriarch. Popular sentiment being it would be hard to classify them as potential suicidal and/or homicidal terrorists. Mueller expressed disagreement with Sen. Leahy and added that he would, “have the IG investigate those assertions, rumors and allegations that may have been spread in the newspapers to assure that that is not the case. And I am concerned that raising to this level without a shred of evidence that there’s any support for those rumors that the public have the perception that the FBI is conducting this type of surveillance.”
And finally what critics of the FBI budget call a shell game hiding corporate lard.
Mueller explained to Leahy that in 2005 “because we did not have a contract” the FBI put aside funds ($97 million) as approved by legislative officials for a total $425 million budget in the Lockheed Martin agreement for Sentinel.
Thanks to C - Span for the show!
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