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Version 2 Version 3
Senate Committee Approves Brennan for C.I.A. Director Nominee to Lead C.I.A. Clears Hurdle After Release of Drone Data
(about 5 hours later)
WASHINGTON — The Senate Intelligence Committee voted 12 to 3 to confirm John O. Brennan as director of the Central Intelligence Agency on Tuesday, hours after the White House agreed to provide more information on the legal basis for targeted killings of Americans believed to pose a terrorist threat. WASHINGTON — The Senate Intelligence Committee on Tuesday voted 12 to 3 to confirm John O. Brennan as director of the Central Intelligence Agency after the White House agreed to provide more information on the legal basis for targeted killings of Americans abroad who are believed to pose a terrorist threat.
The vote, in a closed committee meeting, clears the way for Mr. Brennan, a 25-year C.I.A. veteran who has been President Obama’s top counterterrorism adviser, to be confirmed by the full Senate later this week. The vote, in a closed committee meeting, showed that there was substantial bipartisan support for Mr. Brennan, a 25-year C.I.A. veteran who has most recently been President Obama’s top counterterrorism adviser and has overseen the expansion of strikes by the C.I.A. and the military in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia.
In his White House job, Mr. Brennan, 57, has overseen the expansion of targeted killing in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia. While he is widely expected to win confirmation, senators of both parties have used his nomination to try to pressure the White House into disclosing information it has previously declined to give to Congress. The three no votes were cast by Republicans, including the vice chairman, Senator Saxby Chambliss of Georgia. Four Republicans voted in favor of confirmation. Senator Rand Paul, Republican of Kentucky, said he would filibuster the nomination after receiving a letter from Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. that declined to rule out lethal drone strikes in the United States in “extraordinary circumstances” like a “catastrophic attack” along the lines of Pearl Harbor or Sept. 11, 2001. But it appeared likely that the nomination would get the 60 votes required to end the filibuster, possibly as early as Thursday.
They have had some success. On Tuesday morning, the committee’s Democratic chairwoman, Senator Dianne Feinstein of California, said the White House had agreed to give the committee access to all Justice Department legal opinions on the targeted killing of Americans. Two such opinions were briefly shared with senators at the time of Mr. Brennan’s confirmation hearing last month; it is unclear how many more memos will now be shared. While Mr. Brennan, 57, has been widely expected to win confirmation, senators of both parties have used his nomination to try to pressure the White House into disclosing information it has previously declined to give Congress.
Republicans have pressed for more details on the administration’s response to the terrorist attack in Benghazi, Libya, in September, which killed the American ambassador, J. Christopher Stevens, and three other Americans. The committee has been given additional Benghazi material as well, though not enough to satisfy some Republicans. They have had some success. On Tuesday morning, the committee’s Democratic chairwoman, Senator Dianne Feinstein of California, said the White House had agreed to give the committee access to all Justice Department legal opinions on the targeted killing of Americans. Two such opinions were briefly shared with senators at the time of Mr. Brennan’s confirmation hearing last month; officials said the remaining two were made available on Tuesday.
In addition, a staff member for each senator on the Inteligence Committee will now be permitted for the first time to see the Justice Department memos, which govern the use of drones and other weapons to kill American citizens overseas who have been identified as dangerous terrorists. Previously, only senators themselves were permitted to read the memos, a restriction that Ms. Feinstein had strongly protested, staff members said. But the administration withheld the opinions governing strikes targeting non-Americans that the committee has also sought, arguing that they are confidential legal advice to the president. As a result, the detailed legal rules for a vast majority of drone strikes, including so-called signature strikes aimed at suspected militants whose names are unknown to the people targeting them, remain secret even from the Congressional intelligence committees.
“I have reached an agreement with the White House to provide the committee access to all O.L.C. opinions related to the targeted killing of Americans in a way that allows members to fulfill their oversight responsibilities,” Ms. Feinstein said, referring to the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel. “I am pleased the administration has made this information available. It is important for the committee to do its work and will pave the way for the confirmation of John Brennan to be C.I.A. director.” For their part, Republicans have pressed for more details on the administration’s response to the terrorist attack in Benghazi, Libya, in September, which killed the American ambassador, J. Christopher Stevens, and three other Americans. The committee has been given additional Benghazi material as well, though not enough to satisfy some Republicans.
Congressional officials said the administration had also agreed to provide public, unclassified information about its position on when people suspected of terrorism can be killed legally on American soil. Several members of Congress, including Senator Rand Paul, Republican of Kentucky, have raised the question, but neither Mr. Brennan nor Mr. Obama has given a clear answer in public. In addition, a staff member for each senator was also permitted to see the secret Justice Department memorandums that govern the use of drones and other weapons to kill American citizens identified as dangerous terrorists overseas. Previously, only senators themselves had been allowed to read the memos, a restriction that Ms. Feinstein had strongly protested, staff members said.
Three senators who had demanded all of the memos on killing Americans — Ron Wyden of Oregon and Mark Udall of Colorado, both Democrats, and Susan Collins of Maine, a Republican — said they were pleased with the agreement and would support Mr. Brennan’s confirmation. But Ms. Feinstein complained after the vote that the committee still had not been allowed to retain the memos for study and reference. “They brought them for review, and they took them away,” she told reporters. “Committee staff should be able to look at them and take notes.” Without a copy to refer to, she said, “It’s easy to forget the particulars.”
“We believe that this sets an important precedent for applying our American system of checks and balances to the challenges of 21st-century warfare,” the three senators said in a statement. Three senators who had demanded all of the memos on killing Americans — Ron Wyden of Oregon and Mark Udall of Colorado, both Democrats, and Susan Collins of Maine, a Republican — said they were pleased with the agreement and supported Mr. Brennan’s confirmation.
“We believe that this sets an important precedent for applying our American system of checks and balances to the challenges of 21st-century warfare,” the three said in a statement.
They said the next step should be “to bring the American people into this debate and for Congress to consider ways to ensure that the president’s sweeping authorities are subject to appropriate limitations, oversight and safeguards.”They said the next step should be “to bring the American people into this debate and for Congress to consider ways to ensure that the president’s sweeping authorities are subject to appropriate limitations, oversight and safeguards.”
Only one American, the radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, who had joined the Qaeda affiliate in Yemen, has been deliberately killed in a strike, in September 2011. At least three other Americans killed in strikes in Yemen were not the intended targets, officials have said. In an interview, Mr. Wyden said: “I think this debate is just beginning. The nature of warfare has changed so dramatically. The rules with respect to targeted killing, I think, do need to be made public.”
While Ms. Feinstein has sought legal opinions governing strikes targeting non-Americans, they are still being withheld by the administration, which views them as confidential legal advice to the president. As a result, the detailed legal rules for a vast majority of drone strikes, including so-called signature strikes aimed at suspected militants whose identities are unknown, remain secret. Only one American, the radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, who had joined the Al Qaeda affiliate in Yemen, has been deliberately killed in a drone strike, in September 2011. At least three other Americans killed in strikes in Yemen were not the intended targets, officials have said.
On Monday, Senator Harry Reid, the majority leader, said he hoped the Senate would vote on Mr. Brennan’s nomination this week, but he complained that Republicans were insisting on a 60-vote majority to confirm him. Christopher E. Anders, senior legislative counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union, called the latest disclosures “an important first baby step towards restoring the checks and balances between Congress and the president,” but said it was not enough.
“At a time when America faces so many threats abroad, it is crucial that we have a talented and dedicated individual like John Brennan leading our nation’s most prominent intelligence agency,” Mr. Reid said. “Yet, Republicans again and again interject politics into the confirmation process.” “Amazingly, the Obama administration continues to hide at least some of its legal opinions, even from the intelligence committees,” Mr. Anders said. He said that all members of Congress should have access to the memos on targeted killings and that redacted copies should be made public.
Christopher E. Anders, the senior legislative counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union, called the promised disclosures “an important first baby step towards restoring the checks and balances between Congress and the president,” but he said it was not enough. A spokeswoman for the National Security Council, Caitlin Hayden, said the White House had not closed the door on further disclosures. “We are continuing conversations with members of Congress about their various requests,” she said. “That being said, the confirmation process should be about the nominees and their ability to do the jobs they’re nominated for.”
“Amazingly, the Obama administration continues to hide at least some of its legal opinions, even from the intelligence committees,” Mr. Anders said. He said that all members of Congress should have access to the memos on targeted killings, and that redacted copies should be made public. On Monday, Senator Harry Reid, the majority leader, said he hoped the Senate would vote on Mr. Brennan’s nomination this week but complained that Republicans were insisting on a 60-vote majority to confirm him.
That is partly the work of Mr. Paul, who had pressed administration officials to say whether they believed lethal strikes on American soil were permissible. On Tuesday he got two replies, one from Mr. Brennan, who said that as C.I.A. director he would have no authority to carry out lethal operations inside the United States, and one from Mr. Holder.
Mr. Holder emphasized that the government “has no intention” of carrying out drone strikes in this country and has a policy of using law enforcement and not military force against terrorists within its borders. But in a Sept. 11-style “emergency,” the attorney general wrote, “I would examine the particular facts and circumstances before advising the president on the scope of his authority.”
Mr. Paul was not satisfied with that answer and said he would do his best to block the Brennan confirmation. “Say you’re an Arab-American in Dearborn, Mich., e-mailing your brother in the Mideast, and they think your brother is a terrorist,” Mr. Rand said in an interview. “Does that mean they can use a drone to kill you?”