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Hearings Sought on Data Agency |
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Poindexter's Information Awareness Office began a year ago as part of a push to employ data surveillance and profiling technology in the war on terrorism. It aims to design a system that can analyze mountains of data on everyday transactions -- such as credit card purchases and travel records -- for signs of danger.
In a series of recent letters and statements, Democrats and Republicans said Poindexter's initiative should be the subject of congressional hearings. Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee's subcommittee on defense, complained yesterday that the Pentagon has not been forthcoming about the initiative.
Last week, Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.) and other Democrats sought information from Attorney General John D. Ashcroft about any ties between the Justice Department and the project. Separately, Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa) met with officials from the Defense Department's inspector general's office a few weeks ago to address his own concerns, an aide said.
Sen. Russell Feingold (D-Wis.) will introduce legislation this week calling for the suspension of data-mining efforts until Congress has completed a thorough review of the Poindexter program, his office said yesterday.
And a coalition of several liberal and conservative civil liberties groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union and the Electronic Privacy Information Center, wants Congress to stop funding the initiative as part of a broader campaign to slow the development of government data surveillance systems, according to a letter to be sent to Congress as soon as today.
Because of the recent controversy, Poindexter's office removed from its Web site an emblem that had become a focal point of criticism. It features a variation of the great seal of the United States: An eye looms over a pyramid and appears to scan the world. The motto reads Scientia Est Potentia, or knowledge is power.
In a recent interview, Poindexter said his office understands the need for restrictions on such a system to protect privacy. But he said authorities need to take full advantage of technology to root out terrorists before they can strike. He said it will be up to Congress and policymakers to establish limits. His office has already begun working with other agencies to improve their use of data systems.
The retired Navy rear admiral, a central figure in the Iran-contra scandal in the 1980s, did not return telephone calls yesterday. © 2003 The Washington Post Company
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