Posted on 04/19/2012 12:14:12 PM PDT by null and void
On March 1, the FBI stopped sharing vital terror intel with state and local officials without explanation.
Without making a public or private announcement, the FBI has ended critical intelligence sharing with all 77 law enforcement fusion centers nationwide. This policy was implemented less than two days after a top FBI official told Congress about the FBI’s extensive efforts to share intelligence with state and local partners.
On Monday, a state fusion center official told PJ Media:
The FBI has effectively put us out of business. We are right back to September 10.
Two other fusion center officials in other states confirmed the FBI’s new policy to PJ Media.
On March 1, the FBI’s Terrorist Screening Center (TSC) stopped sharing Watch Encounter reports with the fusion centers. The Watch Encounter reports document incidents of individuals on terror watch lists having encounters with state or local law enforcement.
Until now, the Watch Encounter reports were forwarded to the fusion center responsible for the area where the encounter occurred. Since the TSC doesn’t share the terror watch lists with the fusion centers, the Watch Encounter reports were the only means that state officials had of knowing that someone on a terror watch list had either traveled to or lived in their area.
Forwarding the Watch Encounter reports to the fusion centers had proved helpful to the FBI, according to a fusion center official:
When we received these reports we would get the dash cam recordings from the department in question and even interview the officer who conducted the stop. We would then double-back to the FBI with the information. We also found that while the FBI field offices were supposed to be receiving these encounter reports, they were typically unaware that anything had happened.This official also claimed that the Watch Encounter reports are the core of the FBI’s intelligence-sharing program established after the 9/11 terror attacks:
These reports have been the life blood of the system. Now all of the billions of taxpayer dollars spent building fusion centers all across the country are essentially wasted.On February 28, Assistant Director of the FBI’s Directorate of Intelligence Eric Velez-Villar appeared before the House Homeland Security Counterterrorism and Intelligence Subcommittee. The hearing focused on the FBI’s intelligence sharing with state, local, and tribal law enforcement ten years after the 9/11 attacks. Velez-Villar discussed the importance of the fusion centers in the FBI’s investigative process:
Fusion centers maximize our ability to detect, prevent, investigate, and respond to criminal and terrorist activity. They assist the FBI by providing information made available by the combination of knowledge, expertise, and information within local law enforcement and homeland security agencies operating throughout the nation, and our participation allows us to provide a national perspective on regional threats and trends so we can better inform decision makers at all levels. The exchange of intelligence that takes place in fusion centers aids other intelligence and law enforcement organizations — including the JTTFs — in their investigative operations and serves as a critical tool for collaboration at all levels.Two days later, the sharing stopped. Said another fusion center official who spoke with PJ Media on Tuesday:
Congressional staffers are now investigating, and a key point has been raised in the investigation: it appears the FBI may be required to provide such intelligence to the fusion centers by presidential executive orders and federal law.After a couple of days our analysts noticed that the reports had stopped coming. No notice, no explanation.
Harken back to Veep Biden letting secrets slip from his lips.
Harken back to the UBL invasion and the secrets spilled at press conferences the next Monday that have jeopardized the lives of the attacking forces.
Who among us thinks that elected Federal Politicians can be trusted to keep a secret?
I give the benefit of the doubt in this instance to the FBI.
BTW, I’m showing my bias against politicians with the above statements. I guess it stems from a definition I came up with: “A politician is anyone whose word cannot be trusted.”
It would appear "somethings up"....a bold move no matter which side of the divide isn't towing the line.
There' so much "enemy" infilitration in the system I don't see how they can "share" information across the board without great risks.
On the other hand, if one wants to hide dirty business and what they're up to...stopping the flow of information would create a tighter "secrecy wall".
Yes, that is the conundrum.
It is a matter of “who do you trust with information that can harm society?”
A politician has a job that is dependent upon convincing people to like him/her more than the opposing other politicians.
One way to do this is to share a secret, the same way grade school kids do to impress others. Veep Biden, and other loose lips just never grew up. “Loose lips sink ships,” including this ship of State.
As a Republic, the gradient has been set up by our Founding Fathers that each elected Representative or Senator becomes a Statesman/woman who acts in a manner that is best for the Republic. Few in Congress are Statesmen/women today.
On the other side are those who are trained to protect the Republic from harm.
As you so clearly pointed out, there are risks both ways.
Put yourself in the mindset of those who wish to harm this Republic. NOW, which would you rather have? A society where there are NO secrets, (the Obama Utopian Ideal of Transparency), or ALL dangerous secrets are kept secret?
If you choose the latter, then ask yourself who should decide what is dangerous or not. IOW, who would have the greatest potential of wrecking your plans to do harm to this Republic?
Obviously, this is not an either/or choice.
The problem that I see is that we live in a culture where there are few if any checks and balances on our elected politicians. Thus, politicians have the greater potential of doing harm to the Republic by telling the enemy what they should do, and when, (no element of surprise), to avoid being stopped.
Currently, the voter tolerance of corrupt politicians who shun acceptance of accountability has resulted in the sorry status of the US Federal Government.
It couldn’t happen to a nicer bunch of voters, all 53 % who voted in 2008 for Obama, THEIR Pothead, two-bit Dictator, who has never accepted accountability, or responsibility for anything.
Unclassified and FOUO.
And that means ALL unclassified data. Credit cards, phone records, DOT info, school records, medical, internet, email, commercial business data, E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G that would normally require your permission or a warrant.
Nice huh?
The FBI saved us from the worst excesses of the Clinton Administration - looks like they're doing the same again. Thank God.
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