American Spooks

The United States has always been admired for having amazing organizational capabilities.  In World War II the U.S. was building 3 warships and producing hundreds of armoured vehicles and aircraft per day.  The interstate highway system is second to none in the world.  And when it comes to spies and intelligence gathering the organization of the American system is very big and complex.

 

The United States Intelligence Community (IC) is a cooperative federation of 16 separate United States government agencies that work separately and together to conduct intelligence activities considered necessary for the conduct of foreign relations and the protection of the national security of the United States. Member organizations of the IC include intelligence agencies, military intelligence, and civilian intelligence and analysis offices within federal executive departments. The IC is led by the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), who reports to the President of the United States.

Among their varied responsibilities, the members of the Community collect and produce foreign and domestic intelligence, contribute to military planning, and perform espionage. The IC was established by Executive Order 12333, signed on December 4, 1981 by President Ronald Reagan.

Supporting the work of the 16 main agencies, The Washington Post has reported that there are 1,271 government organizations and 1,931 private companies in 10,000 locations in the United States that are working on counterterrorism, homeland security, and intelligence, and that the intelligence community as a whole includes 854,000 people who hold top-secret clearances.

Julian Assange therefore has a lot of potential whistle blowers operating in the U.S. spy system.

C.I.A.  headquarters in Langley, Virginia.

Members of the U.S. Intelligence Community.

The IC consists of 16 members (also called elements). The Central Intelligence Agency is an independent agency of the United States government. The other 15 elements are offices or bureaus within federal executive departments. The IC is led by the Director of National Intelligence, whose office, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), is not listed as a member of the IC.

• Independent agencies
  • Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
  • Counter Terrorist Unit
• United States Department of Defense
  • Air Force Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Agency (AFISRA)
  • Army Military Intelligence (MI)
  • Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA)
  • Marine Corps Intelligence Activity (MCIA)
  • National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA)
  • National Reconnaissance Office (NRO)
  • National Security Agency (NSA)
  • Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI)
• United States Department of Energy
  • Office of Intelligence and Counterintelligence (OICI)
• United States Department of Homeland Security
  • Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A)
  • Coast Guard Intelligence (CGI)
  • United States Secret Service
• United States Department of Justice
  • Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
  • Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
• United States Department of State
  • Bureau of Intelligence and Research (INR)
• United States Department of the Treasury
  • Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence (TFI)

 

National Security Agency (NSA) headquarters at Fort Meade, Maryland.

 

The U.S. intelligence budget in fiscal year 2009 was $49.8 billion, according to a disclosure required under a recent law implementing recommendations of the 9/11 Commission. This figure is up from $47.5 billion in 2008, and $43.5 billion in 2007.

In a statement on the release of new declassified figures, DNI Mike McConnell said there would be no additional disclosures of classified budget information beyond the overall spending figure because “such disclosures could harm national security.” How the money is divided among the 16 intelligence agencies and what it is spent on is classified. It includes salaries for about 100,000 people, multi-billion dollar satellite programs, aircraft, weapons, electronic sensors, intelligence analysis, spies, computers, and software.

About 70 percent of the intelligence budget goes to contractors for the procurement of technology and services (including analysis), according to a May 2007 chart from the Office of the DNI. Intelligence spending has increased by a third over ten years ago, in inflation-adjusted dollars, according to the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments.

As with most U.S. government agencies, the leadership most often comes from the corporate world.  Almost all U.S. administrations staff their organizational leadership from the ranks of giant U.S. corporations.  Some of these people are very efficient and effective, some such as Donald Rumsfeld are not.  But the point here is that the myriad of U.S. Intelligence agencies not only have the interests of the country at heart.  But quite often the continued stability and growth of the U.S. trans-national corporations.  m