- WASHINGTON (UPI) -- Top U.S.
national security advisers are discussing the creation of a domestic intelligence
organization that would take over the FBI's responsibility for counter-terrorism
spying and analysis, government officials and intelligence experts told
The Washington Post in a report published Saturday.
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- The paper said that there was "high-level debate"
on the idea, reflecting "widespread concern that the FBI had been
unable to transform itself from a law enforcement agency into an intelligence-gathering
unit able to detect and thwart terrorist plans in the United States."
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- It said that FBI Director Robert S. Mueller was opposed
to the creation of a new agency, although the new body wouldn't replace
the bureau but would have "the primary role in gathering and analyzing
intelligence about Americans and foreign nationals in the United States."
Mueller has said he believes that the bureau is capable of doing the job.
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- The newspaper said that top national security officials
discussed the proposal for about two hours on Monday in a meeting chaired
by National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice. Among those attending were
White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card; Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld;
CIA Director George Tenet; U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft and Mueller.
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- An unidentified administration spokesman told the Post
that no conclusions had been reached in the meeting and that a new agency
was just one option under consideration. The newspaper said that further
meetings on the subject are planned.
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- According to the Post, the White House wants to get a
Department of Homeland Security launched first.
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- The Homeland Security legislation will create a new Cabinet-level
department merging 170,000 employees and 22 federal agencies. The latest
version of the bill was approved by the House of Representatives 299-121
on Wednesday night.
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- The bill to create that department moved closer to congressional
approval on Friday, when the Senate voted 65-29 to limit debate on it.
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- Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., said the bill will
come to a vote on Monday.
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