You know times are tough for civil libertarians when they find themselves defending the FBI’s intelligence operations. Confronted last week by congressional support for a new domestic intelligence agency that would assume many of the FBI’s counterterrorism responsibilities, the American Civil Liberties Union was caught mouthing arguments more often heard from Attorney General John Ashcroft […]
Daniel Franklin
Daniel Franklin is a writer based in Washington, D.C.
Posted inFeatures
Dollars Don’t Do It
The FBI has had a rough couple of months with the public, in the press, and on the Hill. Senators are even entertaining the notion of splitting the bureau in half. But if Director Robert Mueller is seriously concerned about the FBI’s future, it’s only because he’s new to the job. Congress may be in […]
Posted inArticle
See Change?
There was a moment of pure pathos at the end of FBI Director Robert Mueller’s recent press conference to announce the bureau’s reorganization plan. Hoping to bolster the country’s confidence in the bureau’s new intelligence operation, Mueller announced that “the individual heading the Office of Intelligence is an experienced CIA officer Â… . Again, the […]
Posted inFeatures
Freeh’s Reign
Washington had rarely seen such urgency and bipartisan resolve. On a warm September day, the president and his handpicked Federal Bureau of Investigation director laid out a new vision for what Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy has called the “crown jewel” of law enforcement agencies. “Today’s FBI,” the president said, “operates in a new and challenging […]
