Thursday, March 21, 2013

No More Drones For The CIA

Exclusive: No More Drones For CIA -- Daniel Klaidman, Daily Beast

Three senior officials tell Daniel Klaidman that the Obama administration is poised to shift the CIA’s drone program to the Pentagon.

At a time when controversy over the Obama administration’s drone program seems to be cresting, the CIA is close to taking a major step toward getting out of the targeted killing business. Three senior U.S. officials tell The Daily Beast that the White House is poised to sign off on a plan to shift the CIA’s lethal targeting program to the Defense Department.

The move could potentially toughen the criteria for drone strikes, strengthen the program’s accountability, and increase transparency. Currently, the government maintains parallel drone programs, one housed in the CIA and the other run by the Department of Defense. The proposed plan would unify the command and control structure of targeted killings and create a uniform set of rules and procedures. The CIA would maintain a role, but the military would have operational control over targeting. Lethal missions would take place under Title 10 of the U.S. Code, which governs military operations, rather than Title 50, which sets out the legal authorities for intelligence activities and covert operations. “This is a big deal,” says one senior administration official who has been briefed on the plan. “It would be a pretty strong statement.”

Read more ....

More News On The CIA Giving Up It's Drones

U.S. to Shift Drone Command -- Wall Street Journal
White House to move drone operations out of CIA, centralize at Pentagon -- FOX News
Pentagon Taking Over Drones Magnifies The CIA's Free Rein -- Business Insider
The CIA Is Losing Its Drone Privileges
-- Joe Coscarelli, New York Mag
White House set to move drone program away from CIA: report -- New York Post
Obama mulls stripping CIA of drones -- RT
Report: CIA Losing Armed Drones Program To Pentagon -- Think Progress
Human rights groups: Getting CIA out of drone business is only first step -- Susan Crabtree, The Washington Times
Feinstein is worried about the CIA losing the drone program -- Passport/Foreign Policy
Going Clear: Drone critics wanted greater transparency. Careful what you wish for. -- Matthew Waxman, National Security/Foreign Policy
Does Transferring Drone Program from CIA to Pentagon Change Anything? -- Opposing View
Does it matter who runs US drone program? Pentagon could supplant CIA. -- Anna Mulrine, Christian Science Monitor

No comments: