Talk:United States Intelligence Community Oversight

Members of Congress with Clearances
Considering all the revelations lately, there should be discussion on this topic. The article was incorrect in stating that members of Congress have Top Secret clearances. Classification is controlled by the Executive Branch. No elected official receives a clearance. They are entitled to information commensurate with their duties in whatever capacity. The President has the authority to appoint Original Classification Authorities and should, theoretically, have access to all information as the head of the Executive Branch, but this is not practically possible considering the vast amount of information out there. Members of Congress, on the other hand, are not members of the Executive Branch and are therefore neither subject to Executive Orders nor entitled to receive information from the Executive Branch. Congress has not yet decided to change the laws on this or significantly strengthen their own access to classified information -- and rightly so, to an extent. Political motivations could pressure members to reveal information or withhold information improperly and it would be nearly impossible to oversee this. Congress writes laws and has allowed the executive to make its own interpretation. It's for this reason that top officials who lie to Congress are not prosecuted; they are bound by non-disclosure agreements with the Executive Branch, the branch that also has the Department of Justice available to press charges. Were Congress to press charges, it would result in a breach of the separation of powers, without laws providing the power to Congress to force the revelation of classified information in Congressional testimony. Sraboy (talk) 19:11, 17 August 2014 (UTC)