Central Intelligence Agency

“ And finally—and perhaps most importantly — we need to deepen the trust between the Intelligence Community and the citizens we strive to protect.
At CIA, I can assure you that we are committed to earning that trust every day. We know we can never take it for granted. We must continue to be as open as possible with the American people so that our society can reach informed judgments on striking the proper balance between individual privacy and national security. As CIA Director, it is my sworn duty to uphold the Constitution and defend national security. ”

“ Our nation’s first line of defense against complicated and fast-moving threats like these is the US Intelligence Community. I feel deeply privileged — and still a bit amazed — that as CIA Director, I get to be a part of this great group of men and women. I’m the son of a machinist from Orange County, California. I had never been east of the Mississippi until college, spending most of my summers working on the family farm in Winfield, Kansas. To be entrusted with leading the greatest intelligence organization in the world is something that I still can’t wrap my head around. ”

“ We are a foreign intelligence agency. We focus on collecting information about foreign governments, foreign terrorist organizations, and the like — not Americans. A number of specific rules keep us centered on that mission and protect the privacy of our fellow Americans. To take just one important example, CIA is legally prohibited from spying on people through electronic surveillance in the United States. We’re not tapping anyone’s phone in Wichita.
I know there will always be skeptics. We need to build trust with them. ”

“ It’s hard stuff and we go at it hard. Because when it comes to overseas threats, CIA is aggressive in our pursuit of the information we need to help safeguard our country. We utilize the whole toolkit at our disposal, fully employing the authorities and capabilities that Congress, the courts, and the Executive Branch have deemed lawful and appropriate, and consistent with our American ideals. ”

“ We work to provide the best information possible to the President and his administration so that they can advance our national interests and protect our country. It is a mission that CIA has carried out for years, quietly and effectively. ”

“ SIGINT shall be collected exclusively where there is a foreign intelligence or counterintelligence purpose to support national and CIA missions and not for any other purpose. The collection of foreign private commercial information or trade secrets is authorized only to protect the national security of the United States or its partners and allies. ”

“ If the Agency is disseminating personal information concerning a foreign person because it is foreign intelligence, the information must relate to an authorized intelligence requirement, and cannot be disseminated solely because of the person’s foreign status. Thus, for example, personal information about the routine activities of a foreign person may not be disseminated unless it relates to an authorized foreign intelligence requirement. ”

“ Each star holds memories of a brave intelligence officer whose example we follow, a treasured colleague whose wisdom we keep, or a lost friend whose laughter we miss.
“Our enduring aspiration as an Agency is to honor their memory. We do so by continuing the mission they served so faithfully.”
Two of the new stars honor communications officers who worked for CIA in the early days of the Cold War. ”

“ The collection, use, retention, and dissemination of information concerning “United States persons” are governed by multiple legal and policy requirements, such as those required by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) , the Privacy Act of 1974, and Executive Order 12333. This regulation is not intended to alter the rules applicable to U.S. persons in FISA, the Privacy Act, Executive Order 12333, or other applicable law. ”

“ During World War II, intelligence consumers realized that the production of basic intelligence by different components of the US Government resulted in a great duplication of effort and conflicting information. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 brought home to leaders in Congress and the executive branch the need for integrating departmental reports to national policymakers. Detailed and coordinated information was needed not only on such major powers as Germany and Japan, but also on places of little previous interest. ”

“ Section II (Intelligence) has responsibility for security, espionage, and foreign intelligence. Section III (Personnel) deals with assignments of personnel, promotion policies, and public information. Section IV (Plans and Budget) has responsibility for long-term planning and for budgetary matters. The Personnel Welfare Bureau is concerned with social problems and contract negotiations. ”

“ A thorough review of security practices and a purge of personnel in the upper echelons of the security apparatus in 1971 served a dual purpose: to weed out those persons with lingering loyalties to Moczar, and to change that image of the security forces so that public cooperation would be enlisted in the maintenance of law and order. The major tool in this public relations campaign has been a balanced, relatively sophisticated, and moderate approach to what might be called "police-community" relations. ”

“ In all, the active members of both police and security forces (uniformed and plainclothes) probably total about 500,000 - or about 3% of the population. To supplement the large police and security forces, the regime has also attempted to organize an extensive network of informers, particularly in regions bordering on West Germany. Although some people, usually SED or FDJ members, willingly act as police informers, most recruits for this task must be coerced into service.
The police maintain a complex and extensive system of checks and controls over the population. ”

“ When it comes to covert action, there is oversight and accountability every step of the way. I inherited an Agency that has a real appreciation for the law and for the Constitution. Despite fictional depictions meant to sell books or box-office tickets, we are not an untethered or rogue agency. ”

“ We do not recommend the creation of a new domestic intelligence agency. It is not needed if our other recommendations are adopted—to establish a strong national intelligence center, part of the NCTC, that will oversee counterterrorism intelligence work, foreign and domestic, and to create a National Intelligence Director who can set and enforce standards for the collection, processing, and reporting of information. Under the structures we recommend,the FBI’s role is focused,but still vital. ”

“ He wrote in The Future of American Secret Intelligence (Infantry Journal Press, 1946, page 46) that world leadership in peace requires even more elaborate intelligence than in war. "The conduct of peace involves all countries, all human activities - not just the enemy and his war production." ”