Posted on 01/25/2007 5:43:33 PM PST by NormsRevenge
Sen. Dianne Feinstein questioned a top Homeland Security Department official Thursday on why his agency has reportedly resisted sharing information with state intelligence officers and even Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's own homeland-security director.
Feinstein asked Charlie Allen, the chief intelligence officer for the Homeland Security Department, about her staff's findings that the federal agency has denied state and local officials at a Sacramento intelligence-sharing facility to obtain top security clearances.
Moreover, California Office of Homeland Security Director Matthew Bettenhausen is not receiving "intelligence he knows exists," Feinstein said. Bettenhausen answers to Schwarzenegger; he formerly worked for DHS in Washington.
DHS, Feinstein charged, "is generally overly protective and resistant to working cooperatively from what its director (Bettenhausen) believes is a fear of becoming irrelevant."
At a hearing of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Feinstein asked Allen to answer those findings. She said cooperation at a similar "joint regional intelligence center" in Los Angeles is much better.
Allen said Bettenhausen had a top-secret clearance and pledged that "we certainly will sponsor top secret clearances for any senior official in Sacramento that needs it."
"Any information that goes beyond, in a compartmented area, we certainly will get that information sanitized and to them immediately if there's threat warning, threat assessment," he said.
Allen also said that earlier this month, a new DHS intelligence officer had "embedded" at the Sacramento center.
"We are not overprotective with sensitive information," Allen said.
Outgoing National Intelligence Director John Negroponte and the man nominated to succeed him, Mike McConnell, have "directed DHS to share information of a sensitive level immediately and securely with Sacramento," Allen said.
Because they can't be trusted?
Intelligence and Kalifornia state officers do not fit in the same sentence....
not sure,,
article says .."cooperation at a similar "joint regional intelligence center" in Los Angeles is much better."
I'll accept that as long as it applies to both sides. Just remember who we are talking about.
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