cannabisnews.com: FBI Reorganization Gets Under Way





FBI Reorganization Gets Under Way
Posted by CN Staff on May 28, 2002 at 10:23:09 PT
By Carl Cameron 
Source: FoxNews.com
Attorney General John Ashcroft and FBI Director Robert Mueller are set to announce dramatic new changes to the Federal Bureau of Investigation that officials hope will greatly aid the war on terrorism. In the official announcement Wednesday, Ashcroft is expected to say that the changes will "explicitly establish protection of the United States and the American people from terrorism as the highest priority and central mission of the FBI." 
The plan amounts to a wholesale change of focus from the FBI's historic role of investigating crimes that have already been committed to a new mission: preventing future crimes and terrorism. The FBI itself describes it as a shift from a "reactive to a proactive orientation." Many reforms had been proposed for years but, until Sept. 11, the FBI resisted change. The turnaround amounts to a massive change in structure, investigative techniques, culture, attitude, procedures and methodology, hiring and technology. To begin with, 900 new agents will be hired by September, joining the 7,000 already in the agency. Before the terror attacks, only 153 agents were assigned to the Counter-Terrorism Division. That number will be quadrupled by 2004 to 682 agents in counter-terrorism, with a third at headquarters and more than 400 in the field. The CTD will be expanded, adding 14 new "sections" and "units" specializing in terrorism, technology, world cultures, languages and intelligence-gathering. Another 518 agents will be reassigned to counter-terrorism operations from within the agency. Of them, 400 will come from the anti-drug crimes division, 59 will be shifted from white-collar crime divisions and another 59 will be transferred from the violent crime-fighting sections. There will be a new emphasis on computers and technology. For years, the FBI's technology has been woefully outdated — many networks are not linked and analysis is inadequate. The new National Joint Terrorism Task Force, already in operation, will establish an Office of Intelligence that will encourage analytical capabilities. More critically, the new intelligence section will have sweeping investigative authority in the U.S. — authority that has not existed recently, as the Central Intelligence Agency cannot spy in the United States and FBI undercover work has until now been limited to probing crimes that are assumed to have already occurred. The new Mobile National Terrorism Response Capability will also include "flying squads", elite teams to travel the world collecting information. Among the key near-term actions on counter-intelligence, the FBI will: • Redefine the relationship between headquarters and the field so that agents in the field will have more power to investigate;• Establish a new Espionage Section in Counterintelligence Division to spy on those who spy on the United States;• Re-orient counter-intelligence strategy to identify and protect key targets of foreign interests. That means electric grids and other such strategic interests. The FBI will also focus on emerging strategic threats that range from China to Cuba to Al Qaeda; • Upgrade analytical capabilities with training and technologies;• Establish counter-intelligence career paths for Special Agents. Recruiting specialists with specific skills is a fairly new concept for the FBI;• Adopt security measures to protect FBI investigations and information; • Target recruitment to hire agents, analysts, translators and others with specialized skills. To tighten cyber-security, the FBI has several short-term plans, including the development of a new Cyber Division with new Regional Computer Forensic labs nationwide. The FBI will expand alliances with federal agencies like the CIA, and build a new Investigative Technology Division for better electronic surveillance of potential terrorists.The famed FBI forensics labs are also targeted for a shake-up. Mueller will propose splitting the lab into two parts, each with a separate director. One will be a cyber-crime and high technology division to deal with emerging computer crime and make better use of computers for analysis. The second will be for forensics and scientific work, like fingerprint and DNA analysis. FBI officials argue that the reorganization will help avoid the types of mistakes made in the past, and also help prevent future attacks. Several planned changes were made possible by the U.S.A. Patriot Act that swept through Congress immediately following the Sept. 11 terror attacks. Some reforms are already underway. Many of the reforms seem to be direct responses to missed leads and bureaucratic inaction in the months before Sept. 11. FBI field alerts to Washington of Middle Eastern men training at U.S. flight schools during the summer of 2001 were buried in paperwork, and agents in Minneapolis who circumvented normal channels to contact the CIA about suspected "20th hijacker" Zacarias Moussaoui were reprimanded. Fox News has reported that there may be a dozen more instances of missed opportunities and overlooked information relating to the September terror attacks. Others parts of the reorganization can be attributed to pre-existing controversies, such as the case of Robert Hanssen, sentenced this month to life in prison for spying for Moscow, and the affair of Wen Ho Lee, a nuclear scientist suspected, imprisoned and then cleared of spying for China. Justice Department officials, perhaps anticipating congressional criticism of the new measures, pointed out to Fox News that critics of pre-Sept. 11 intelligence and investigative failures have frequently been quick to decry perceived threats to civil liberties. The officials said that those who criticize mistakes made in the past but now balk at steps to prevent recurring problems or attacks in the future either want it both ways, are playing politics, or both.  Fox News has obtained several line-items that will be FBI priorities:   • Protect the United States from terrorist attack   • Protect the United States against foreign intelligence operations and espionage   • Protect the United States against cyber-based attacks and high-technology crimes   • Combat public corruption at all levels   • Combat transnational and national criminal organizations and enterprises   • Combat major white-collar crime   • Combat significant violent crime   • Support federal, state, local, and international partners   • Upgrade technology to successfully perform the FBI's mission   • Protect civil rights   Source: FoxNews.comAuthor: Carl Cameron Published: Tuesday, May 28, 2002 Copyright: Fox News Network, LLC 2002Contact: comments foxnews.comWebsite: http://www.foxnews.com/Related Articles:The War on Terrorism Takes Aim at Crimehttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12466.shtmlOverhaul Likely To Shrink FBI Drug War Role http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11527.shtmlIn a Higher Profile, Ashcroft Gets Heat http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11448.shtmlEx-FBI Officials Criticize Tactics On Terrorism http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11442.shtml
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Comment #6 posted by qqqq on May 28, 2002 at 17:21:25 PT
......p4me
....August 2 1937....
http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/hemp/taxact/mjtaxact.htm
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Comment #5 posted by mayan on May 28, 2002 at 17:03:08 PT
Federal Bureau of Incompetence
Agent's Letter Exposes FBI's 'Shading/Skewing Facts' Of 911:
http://rense.com/general25/facts.htm
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Comment #4 posted by p4me on May 28, 2002 at 12:04:02 PT
New York Times and Pot-tv
Yesterdays show on pot-tv- http://www.pot-tv.net/archive/shows/pottvshowse-1338.html/ 
talks about the New York Times having an article that called the position of the federal government toward Prop. 215 "meanspirited and unconstitutional."Let's see unconstitutional position on the Washington medical marijuana ballot of 1998, and unconstitutionally having the DEA defy specific exemptions for hempseed and legislate a ban on all hempfoods, and unconstitutionally blocking the right-to-die iniatives that need serious national debate. It looks to me as if they are stepping all over the constitution and finally the New York Times admits that it is true that what the federal government is doing against Prop. 215 is unconstitutional. Didn't Busch take an oath to uphold the constitution instead of trashing on it? When the President is not listening to 73% of the people that is something as bad as treason. The members of the Extremist Party believe that growing marijuana in recognition of the violation of our rights is a Patriotic Act. After that you are on your own. If you believe that the marijuana wars are clearly unconstitutional you will be joined in spirit by many. This Party is compatable with all parties but has a strong dislike for the two parties that monopolize politics/power presently. The moderates fall under the banner that there are plenty of qualified people out of 288 million to replace the present management of Congress a mere 535 in number. There are no dues and no papers to sign. You just have to believe that growing marijuana is a patriotic act. It either lives in your heart or it doesn't and we are not too concerned if you lie either way about being an Extremist. If you are a pledged moderate you are committed to removing the all members of Congress at the Time of the Rainbow Farms incedent of last Labor Day. ICBS,VAAI,POW
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Comment #3 posted by SpaceCat on May 28, 2002 at 11:26:33 PT
Tuttle, not Buttle
We don't make mistakes, but if you sign this waiver you can have the body back.Who knew Terry Gilliam was a prophet?
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Comment #2 posted by p4me on May 28, 2002 at 11:21:28 PT
The Age of Information or not?
I was glad to see the 7000 number for the size of the FBI. That means that if 120 agents were at Rainbow Farms last Labor Day that 1 in 60 agents were not pursuing the proper priorities.I cancelled my paper after being insulted with not including the 2000 FBI report on arrest that included that 734,298 number which I might get wrong so I just go with 2000 marijuana arrest a day. 365 times 2000 is 730,000. Close enough. I would be happy if Americans could come within a 100,000 either way. It was not in the paper so how do you find out? I thought this was the Age of Information. Why can't the FBI publish a monthly figure on there website. Even an estimate will do. Well sure, they have to put up the 2001 figures before they can tell use first quarter results. What was the dollar amount of all seizures due to marijuana? Oh, catagories are too hard, heah. Well how about just total seizures by month so far this year. And 2001 ended five months ago and what the hell was the amount of seizures in total? Some accountability to the American people. Have doughnut man jump in here and put up some numbers and the Cnews choir will take care of the rest.The local news stated the cost of imprisoning a person at $65 dollars a day. The 60 Minute piece Sunday used a $20,000 a year figure. Does anybody have the exact date the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937 was passed that short two hours session on that sweltering August day back before the Capitol had air conditioning. I hope some organization can pull off another DEAth demonstration on that day and stage mock retirement parties all across the country. And to comment about our Senator wannabe President from North Carolina, if you do not have the courage to call for the retirement on or before that 65th anniversary, you don't have the mixture of courage, leadership and boy scout virtues needed to be President.Where are those numbers doughnut man? Do your public service and tell us. We will take care of the rest. Honest.ICBS,VAAI,POW
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Comment #1 posted by kaptinemo on May 28, 2002 at 11:10:05 PT:
Here it comes...
Ashcroft's wet dream made manifest; the ability to ppek into your private life with impunity. The (gagging on a lie) USA PATRIOT ACT.More critically, the new intelligence section will have sweeping investigative authority in the U.S. — authority that has not existed recently, as the Central Intelligence Agency cannot spy in the United States and FBI undercover work has until now been limited to probing crimes that are assumed to have already occurred. (Emphasis mine -k.)Now, ask yourself this: a patriot comes home one day to find a black-bag goon squad from the FBI in his home. Said patriot is armed and demands that the FBI produce the warrant...and the FBI is insouciantly slow to produce a warrant. What do you think might happen?The beginning of a civil war, maybe?
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