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USA Today
2 days ago
- Politics
- USA Today
New House cartel task force wants intel agencies to target fentanyl trade
New House cartel task force wants intel agencies to target fentanyl trade The U.S. intelligence community said drug cartels were responsible for more than 52,000 fatal drug overdoses in the space of 12 months. Show Caption Hide Caption How fentanyl reaches the US and the role of Trump's China tariffs US President Donald Trump has imposed new tariffs on Chinese goods, citing Beijing's failure to stop the export of chemicals used to produce fentanyl. unbranded - Newsworthy The new task force was created by the House Intelligence Committee in a rare show of bipartisanship. 'The United States cannot allow Mexico, our neighbor and largest trading partner, to devolve into a failed narco-state run by violent cartels,' Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Tx., said. Mexico's cooperation in the fight against fentanyl traffickers is one element of Trump's ongoing trade war. WASHINGTON – In a rare moment of congressional bipartisanship, Republicans and Democrats on June 4 announced a new Cartel Task Force to best weaponize U.S. spies and intelligence analysts against Mexican fentanyl trafficking and human smuggling organizations. The task force will be run through the House Intelligence Committee and led by Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas. The task force will hold hearings on how to improve intelligence collection against drug cartels, and conduct site visits for on-the-ground insight into the U.S. fight against fentanyl and migrant smugglings, Crenshaw said. The Cartel Task Force is an 'actionable response' to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence's 2025 Annual Threat Assessment, said committee chairman Rep. Rick Crawford, R-Ark. In that assessment, the ODNI highlighted smuggling and drug cartels – and the fentanyl crisis in particular – as perhaps the top threat to U.S. security. 'Terrorist insurgency' 'Cartels are largely responsible for the more than 52,000 U.S. deaths from synthetic opioids in the 12 months ending in October 2024 and helped facilitate the nearly three million illegal migrant arrivals in 2024, straining resources and putting U.S. communities at risk,' the ODNI said in its report released March 11. More: Blue Lotus, Four Horsemen, Hydra and Pelican Bones: How the US fights the fentanyl crisis 'The United States cannot allow Mexico, our neighbor and largest trading partner, to devolve into a failed narco-state run by violent cartels,' Crenshaw said in a statement. 'The situation in Mexico has escalated from a drug war to a full-scale terrorist insurgency.' Mexican officials including President Claudia Sheinbaum have denied the cartels constitute any kind of insurgency but have pledged to work closely with Trump in fighting them. In a lengthy X post in February, Sheinbaum said her administration had seized more than 40 tons of drugs, including 20 million doses of fentanyl, since taking office in October. 'What we heard from the IC leaders in our worldwide threats hearing earlier this year tells us that this is an important endeavor,' Crawford told USA TODAY, referring to the U.S. intelligence community. Members of the House Intelligence Committee, with special security clearances, have 'unique access that other committees don't have, that can inform policy and make recommendations' to the full Congress, he said. Crenshaw said the task force will also look at ways the U.S. and Mexico can work more closely together. 'Together, we will develop actionable, integrated solutions to neutralize this evolving threat and safeguard American lives,' he said. Ranking Democratic Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut praised the bipartisan nature of the task force and said it would 'propose concrete solutions to help protect American lives and interests.' Mexico's top cartels The two main Mexican trafficking organizations are the Sinaloa and Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) cartels, and U.S. law enforcement and intelligence officials say both have tentacles that reach deep into the United States and around the world. Besides narcotics trafficking, Sinaloa, CJNG and other groups are also involved in human trafficking, the arms trade and 'other illegal and destabilizing activities,' the ODNI report said. More: Koi fish, bananas and puppies: the ingenious ways smugglers bring illegal drugs into the US Both the Senate and House intelligence committees held hearings on the annual worldwide threat assessment earlier this year. "For the first time, the annual threat assessment lists foreign illicit drug actors as the very first threat to our country," including Mexican cartels and Chinese chemical manufacturers, said Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee. President Donald Trump campaigned on taking a more aggressive stance against Mexican cartels and the Chinese groups supplying them with precursor chemicals to manufacture fentanyl, which has killed more Americans than any other drug by far. Mexico's cooperation in the fight against fentanyl traffickers is one element of Trump's ongoing trade war. With support from some lawmakers including Crenshaw, Trump has also declared Mexican cartels terrorist organizations -- and some have suggested Washington should send the U.S. military to kill cartel leaders on their own turf.
The Intercept
22-05-2025
- Business
- The Intercept
U.S. Spy Agencies Are Getting a One-Stop Shop to Buy Your Most Sensitive Personal Data
The ever-growing market for personal data has been a boon for American spy agencies. The U.S. intelligence community is now buying up vast volumes of sensitive information that would have previously required a court order, essentially bypassing the Fourth Amendment. But the surveillance state has encountered a problem: There's simply too much data on sale from too many corporations and brokers. So the government has a plan for a one-stop shop. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence is working on a system to centralize and 'streamline' the use of commercially available information, or CAI, like location data derived from mobile ads, by American spy agencies, according to contract documents reviewed by The Intercept. The data portal will include information deemed by the ODNI as highly sensitive, that which can be 'misused to cause substantial harm, embarrassment, and inconvenience to U.S. persons.' The documents state spy agencies will use the web portal not just to search through reams of private data, but also run them through artificial intelligence tools for further analysis. Rather than each agency purchasing CAI individually, as has been the case until now, the 'Intelligence Community Data Consortium' will provide a single convenient web-based storefront for searching and accessing this data, along with a 'data marketplace' for purchasing 'the best data at the best price,' faster than ever before, according to the documents. It will be designed for the 18 different federal agencies and offices that make up the U.S. intelligence community, including the National Security Agency, CIA, FBI Intelligence Branch, and Homeland Security's Office of Intelligence and Analysis — though one document suggests the portal will also be used by agencies not directly related to intelligence or defense. 'In practice, the Data Consortium would provide a one-stop shop for agencies to cheaply purchase access to vast amounts of Americans' sensitive information from commercial entities, sidestepping constitutional and statutory privacy protections,' said Emile Ayoub, a lawyer with the Brennan Center's liberty and national security program. 'ODNI is working to streamline a number of inefficient processes, including duplicative contracts to access existing data, and ensuring Americans civil liberties and Fourth Amendment rights are upheld,' ODNI spokesperson Olivia Coleman said in a statement to The Intercept. Coleman did not answer when asked if the new platform would sell access to data on U.S. citizens, or how it would make use of artificial intelligence. Spy agencies and military intelligence offices have for years freely purchased sensitive personal information rather than obtain it by dint of a judge's sign-off. Thanks largely to unscrupulous advertisers and app-makers working in a regulatory vacuum, it's trivial to procure extremely sensitive information about virtually anyone with an online presence. Smartphones in particular leave behind immense plumes of data, including detailed records of your movement that can be bought and sold by anyone with an interest. The ODNI has previously defined 'sensitive' CAI as information 'not widely known about an individual that could be used to cause harm to the person's reputation, emotional well-being, or physical safety.' Procurement documents reviewed by The Intercept make clear the project is designed to provide access to this highest 'sensitive' tier of CAI. The documents provide a glimpse at some of the many types of CAI available, including 'information addressing economic security, supply chain, critical infrastructure protection, great power competition, agricultural data, industrial data, sentiment analysis, and video analytic services.' While the proliferation of data that can reveal intimate details about virtually anyone has alarmed civil libertarians, privacy advocates, and certain members of Congress, the intelligence community sees another problem: There's too much data to keep organized, and the disorganized process of buying it is wasting money. To address this overabundance, the ODNI is seeking private sector vendors to build and manage a new 'commercial data consortium that unifies commercial data acquisition then enables IC users to access and interact with this commercial data in one place,' according to one procurement document obtained by The Intercept. The ODNI says the platform, the 'Intelligence Community (IC) Data Consortium (ICDC),' will help correct the currently 'fragmented and decentralized' purchase of commercial data like smartphone location pings, real estate records, biometric data, and social media content. The document laments how often various spy agencies are buying the same data without realizing it. The ODNI says this new platform, which will live at will 'help streamline access to CAI for the entire IC and make it available to mission users in a more cohesive, efficient, and cost-effective manner by avoiding duplicative purchases, preventing sunk costs from unused licenses, and reducing overall data storage and compute costs,' while also incorporating 'civil liberties and privacy best practices.' 'The IC is still adhering to the 'just grab all of it, we'll find something to do with it' mentality.' While the project's nod to civil liberties might come as some relief to privacy advocates, the project also represents the extent to which the use of this inherently controversial form of surveillance is here to stay. 'Clearly the IC is still adhering to the 'just grab all of it, we'll find something to do with it' mentality rather than being remotely thoughtful about only collecting data it needs or has a specific envisioned use for,' said Calli Schroeder, senior counsel at the Electronic Privacy Information Project. Once the website is up and running, the procurement materials say the portal will eventually allow users to analyze the data using large language models, AI-based text tools prone to major factual errors and fabrications. The portal will also facilitate 'sentiment analysis,' an often pseudoscientific endeavor purporting to discern one's opinion about a given topic using implicit signals in their behavior, movement, or speech. Such analysis is a 'huge cause for concern' according to Schroeder. 'It means the intelligence community is still, to at least some degree, buying into the false promise of a constantly and continuously debunked practice,' she said. 'Let me be clear: Sentiment analysis not only does not work, it cannot work. Its only consistent success has been in perpetuating harmful discrimination (of gender, culture, race, and neurodivergence, among others).' Whether for sentiment analysis or some other goal, using CAI data sets to query an AI crystal ball poses serious risks, said Ayoub. If such analysis worked as billed, 'AI tools make it easier to extract, re-identify, and infer sensitive information about people's identities, locations, ideologies, and habits — amplifying risks to Americans' privacy and freedoms of speech and association,' he said. On top of that, 'These tools are a black box with little insight into training data, metric, or reliability of outcomes. The IC's use of these tools typically comes with high risk, questionable track records, and little accountability, especially now that AI policy safeguards were rescinded early in this administration.' In 2023, the ODNI declassified a 37-page report detailing the vastly expanding use of such CAI data by the U.S. intelligence community, and the threat this poses to the millions of Americans whose lives are cataloged, packaged, and sold by a galaxy of unregulated data brokers. The report, drafted for then-director of national intelligence Avril Haines, included a dire warning to the public: 'Today, in a way that far fewer Americans seem to understand, and even fewer of them can avoid, CAI includes information on nearly everyone that is of a type and level of sensitivity that historically could have been obtained, if at all, only through targeted (and predicated) collection, and that could be used to cause harm to an individual's reputation, emotional well-being, or physical safety.' The extent to which CAI has commodified spy powers previously attainable only by well-resourced governments cannot be overstated: In 2021, for instance, The Intercept reported the existence of Anomaly Six, a startup that buys geolocational data leaked from smartphones apps. During an Anomaly Six presentation, the company demonstrated its ability to track not only the Chinese navy through the phones of its sailors, but also follow CIA and NSA employees as they commuted to and from work. The ICDC project reflects a fundamental dissonance within the intelligence community, which acknowledges that CAI is a major threat to the public while refusing to cease buying it. 'The government would never have been permitted to compel billions of people to carry location tracking devices on their persons at all times, to log and track most of their social interactions, or to keep flawless records of all their reading habits,' the ODNI wrote in its 2022 report. While conceding 'unfettered access to CAI increases its power in ways that may exceed our constitutional traditions or other societal expectations,' the report says, 'the IC cannot willingly blind itself to this information.' In 2024, following the declassified report and the alarm it generated, the ODNI put forth a set of CAI usage rules purporting to establish guardrails against privacy violations and other abuses. The framework earned praise from some corners for requiring the intelligence community to assess the origin and sensitivity of CAI before using it, and for placing more rigorous requirements on agencies that wish to use the most intimate forms of private data. But critics were quick to point out that the ODNI's rules, which enshrined the intelligence community's 'flexibility to experiment' with CAI, amounted to more self-regulation from a part of the government with a poor track record of self-regulating. While sensitive CAI comes with more rules — like keeping records of its use, protecting its storage, and some disclosure requirements — these guidelines offer great deal latitude to the intelligence community. The rule about creating a paper trail pertaining to sensitive CAI use, for example, is mandated only 'to the extent practicable and consistent with the need to protect intelligence sources and methods,' and can be ignored entirely in 'exigent circumstances.' In other words, it's not really a requirement at all. Ayoub told The Intercept he worries the ICDC plan will only entrench this self-policing approach. The documents note that vendors would be tasked to some extent with determining whether the data they sell is indeed sensitive, and therefore subject to stricter privacy safeguards, rather than a third party. 'Relying on private vendors to determine whether CAI is considered sensitive may increase the risk that the IC purchases known categories of sensitive information without sufficient safeguards for privacy and civil liberties or the warrant, court order, or subpoena they would otherwise need to obtain,' he said. The portal idea appears to have started under the Biden administration, when it was known as the 'Data Co-Op.' It now looks like it will go live during a Trump administration. Elon Musk's so-called Department of Government Efficiency is already working on building and streamlining access to other large repositories of perilously sensitive information. In March, the Washington Post reported that DOGE workers intent on breaking down 'information silos' across the federal government were trying to 'unify systems into one central hub aims to advance multiple Trump administration priorities, including finding and deporting undocumented immigrants.' The documents note that the portal will also be accessible to so-called 'non-Title 50' agencies outside of the national defense and intelligence apparatus. Ayoub argued the intelligence community can't provide access to its upcoming CAI portal without 'raising the risk that agencies like DHS's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) would access the CAI database to identify and target noncitizens such as student protestors based on their search or browsing histories and location information.' While the ODNI has acknowledged the importance of transparency, usernames for the portal will not include the name of the analyst's agency, 'thus obscuring any specific participation from individual participants,' according to the project documents. 'The irony is not lost on me that they are making efforts to protect individuals within the IC from being identified regarding their participation in this project but have no qualms about vacuuming up the personal data of Americans against their wishes and knowledge,' said Schroeder. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., a longtime critic of the Fourth Amendment end run posed by CAI, expressed concern to The Intercept over how the portal will ultimately be used. 'Policies are one thing, but I'm concerned about what the government is actually doing with data about Americans that it buys from data brokers,' he said in a statement. 'All indications from news reports and Trump administration officials are that Americans should be extremely worried about how this administration may be using commercial data.'
Time of India
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Intelligence officials fired: Tulsi Gabbard fires two top intelligence officials while Donald Trump is away in the Middle East; here's what they did wrong
ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT FAQs The Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard , has fired two senior intelligence officials who worked for more than 25 years. The two people fired were Mike Collins and Maria Langan-Riekhof. Collins was acting chair of the National Intelligence Council , and Langan-Riekhof was his team said they were removed because they didn't support President Trump. But they didn't give any clear reason or proof. Gabbard's office said she wants to help Trump stop politics from affecting intelligence news was first reported by Fox News Digital. The firings happened just one week after a memo was released that contradicted Trump's claims about Venezuelan memo was written by the National Intelligence Council, the same agency the two officials led. Trump had used the idea that Venezuela's government was linked to the Tren de Aragua gang to justify deporting Venezuelans using the Alien Enemies the memo, which became public after a records request, said there was no connection between Venezuela's government and the gang. Democrats are concerned about the firings, saying there's no real explanation for them.U.S. Rep. Jim Himes, top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said that unless there's proof, people will think the intelligence community must now support Trump's political goals to keep their jobs. He said the analysis must be truthful and non-political, not just what the president wants to National Intelligence Council isn't well-known to the public but plays a big role by combining intel from different agencies for the White House and top security officials. Collins was a top expert on East Asia in the intelligence of used to lead a team at the CIA and knew a lot about the Middle East. Efforts to reach them on Wednesday didn't work. The CIA didn't say anything, calling it a staff issue. Gabbard moved some key intelligence offices from the CIA to ODNI offices include the National Intelligence Council and the team that writes the President's Daily Brief. The PDB is a top-secret daily report that gives the president the most important intelligence and security though the PDB is officially ODNI's job, the CIA used to play a big role by giving staff and infrastructure to support it. Now, Gabbard wants more direct control over the PDB, so those resources will be moved to is the top boss of 18 intelligence agencies and is trying to change how the intelligence community works. She ended diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, following Trump's also started a task force to find ways to cut costs and see if they can declassify info about COVID-19 and other subjects. Gabbard promised to look into leaks and stop intelligence from being used for politics.Q1. Why were the intelligence officials fired The officials were fired because they were against President Trump.Q2. Who is Tulsi Gabbard?She is US top intelligence chief, Director of National Intelligence
Time of India
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Tulsi Gabbard fires two top intelligence officials while Donald Trump is away in the Middle East; here's what they did wrong
The Director of National Intelligence , Tulsi Gabbard , has fired two senior intelligence officials who worked for more than 25 years. The two people fired were Mike Collins and Maria Langan-Riekhof. Collins was acting chair of the National Intelligence Council , and Langan-Riekhof was his deputy. Gabbard's team said they were removed because they didn't support President Trump. But they didn't give any clear reason or proof. Gabbard's office said she wants to help Trump stop politics from affecting intelligence work. This news was first reported by Fox News Digital. The firings happened just one week after a memo was released that contradicted Trump's claims about Venezuelan immigrants. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Damai Bahagia: Beautiful New Senior Apartments with Two Bedrooms Senior Apartments | Search Ads Search Now Undo That memo was written by the National Intelligence Council, the same agency the two officials led. Trump had used the idea that Venezuela's government was linked to the Tren de Aragua gang to justify deporting Venezuelans using the Alien Enemies Act. But the memo, which became public after a records request, said there was no connection between Venezuela's government and the gang. Democrats are concerned about the firings, saying there's no real explanation for them. Live Events U.S. Rep. Jim Himes, top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said that unless there's proof, people will think the intelligence community must now support Trump's political goals to keep their jobs. He said the analysis must be truthful and non-political, not just what the president wants to hear. The National Intelligence Council isn't well-known to the public but plays a big role by combining intel from different agencies for the White House and top security officials. Collins was a top expert on East Asia in the intelligence world. Langan-Riekh of used to lead a team at the CIA and knew a lot about the Middle East. Efforts to reach them on Wednesday didn't work. The CIA didn't say anything, calling it a staff issue. Gabbard moved some key intelligence offices from the CIA to ODNI buildings. These offices include the National Intelligence Council and the team that writes the President's Daily Brief. The PDB is a top-secret daily report that gives the president the most important intelligence and security updates. Even though the PDB is officially ODNI's job, the CIA used to play a big role by giving staff and infrastructure to support it. Now, Gabbard wants more direct control over the PDB, so those resources will be moved to ODNI. Gabbard is the top boss of 18 intelligence agencies and is trying to change how the intelligence community works. She ended diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, following Trump's orders. She also started a task force to find ways to cut costs and see if they can declassify info about COVID-19 and other subjects. Gabbard promised to look into leaks and stop intelligence from being used for politics. FAQs Q1. Why were the intelligence officials fired ? The officials were fired because they were against President Trump. Q2. Who is Tulsi Gabbard? She is US top intelligence chief, Director of National Intelligence
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Gabbard moves presidential daily intelligence brief staff from CIA to ODNI
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard moved the Presidential Daily Brief staff from the CIA to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, Fox News Digital confirmed. A senior intelligence source told Fox News Digital that the director of National Intelligence "has always controlled" the presidential daily brief (PDB) and that Gabbard "is just moving it physically to ODNI from CIA in a streamlining effort and a continuity of workforce." The President's Daily Brief (PDB), according to the intelligence community, is a daily summary of high-level, all-source information and analysis on national security issues produced for the president and key cabinet members and advisers. It is coordinated and delivered by the ODNI with contributions from the CIA as well as other elements from the intelligence community. It has been presented to the president since 1946. Gabbard Fires 'Deep State' Heads Of National Intelligence Council To Root Out 'Politicization Of Intel' The move comes after Gabbard, on Tuesday, also moved the National Intelligence Council from the CIA to ODNI. NIC, according to senior intelligence officials, has always been a DNI component." Another senior intelligence official pointed to Gabbard's confirmation hearing, in which she said her "priority was to deliver timely, accurate and actionable intelligence as the President's principal intelligence advisor." Read On The Fox News App "The PDB staff and the NIC are the primary apparatus that feeds her this advisory material, so moving them physically closer gives her the best support," the official said. "In other words, having them in closer proximity gives her less lag time and faster responsiveness to fill that role as principal intelligence advisor." Dni Gabbard Refers Intel Officials To Doj For Prosecution Over Alleged Leaks Of Classified Information The official added: "Both moves are about providing the President more timely and actionable intelligence." The moves come as Gabbard has taken steps to root out leakers and alleged "deep state holdovers" who officials say are politicizing intelligence analysis and "trying to sabotage President Trump's agenda." Flashback: Biden Campaign, Blinken Orchestrated Intel Letter To Discredit Hunter Biden Laptop Story, Ex-cia Official Says So far, Gabbard has referred three intelligence community professionals to the Department of Justice for criminal prosecution over alleged leaks of classified information. Fox News Digital first reported on those criminal referrals in April. An ODNI official at that time told Fox News Digital that the intelligence community professionals allegedly leaked classified information to the Washington Post and The New York Times. Fox News Digital, on Tuesday, exclusively reported that Gabbard had fired the top officials leading National Intelligence Council, whom whistleblowers described as "radically opposed to Trump." Gabbard fired Mike Collins, who was serving as the acting chair of the National Intelligence Council, and his deputy, Maria Langan-Riekhof, Tuesday, senior intelligence officials told Fox News Digital. Fox News Digital reached out Langan-Riekhof for comment and did not immediately hear back, and couldn't immediately find contact information for Collins. Collins also has whistleblower complaints against him for political bias and "deliberately undermining the incoming Trump administration," officials said. They added that Collins was closely associated with Michael Morrell, the former deputy director of the CIA who worked to write a public letter in 2020 claiming that Hunter Biden's laptop had "all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation," and to get signatures from top ex-intelligence officials. As for Langan-Reikhof, officials said she has been a "key advocate" for diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, and is someone who whistleblowers allege is "radically opposed to Trump."Original article source: Gabbard moves presidential daily intelligence brief staff from CIA to ODNI
