SENATOR ROBERTS REMARKS ON THE WMD COMMISSION REPORT
WASHINGTON, DC– U.S. Senator Pat Roberts today made the following statement:
“While we are still wading through the Commission’s very thorough and extensive report, I am very pleased by what I have seen so far. It is readily apparent to me that the members of the Commission took their assignment very seriously and they have added significantly to what I see as an ongoing effort to reform and improve our nation’s intelligence capabilities. I am especially pleased to see the Commission emphasize themes that the Senate Intelligence Committee has been highlighting for years.
“I have spoken with Judge Silberman and Senator Robb and expressed to them my strong approval of what I have seen so far. I look forward to discussing the entirety of their work and I invited them to speak directly with the Committee early next week. It is already apparent to me, however, that we agree that the Reform bill was just the first step. As the Commission said in its report, we still need “dramatic” and “fundamental” change in an Intelligence Community that is all too slow to change the way it does its work. It is imperative that we institutionalize a continuous process of change that allows the Intelligence Community to continue to adapt to new threats.
“I don’t think there should be any doubt that we have now heard it all regarding prewar intelligence. I think that it would be a monumental waste of time to replow this ground any further. We should now turn our full attention to the future and ensuring that the new Director of National Intelligence has all of the authority he will need to do his job and address the problems highlighted by the Commission and the Congressional Intelligence Committees over the years. I intend to explore fully with Mr. Negroponte at his confirmation hearing the question of authority and the following recommendations:
• the need for strong leadership and fundamental change,
• information access vs. information sharing,
• strategic analysis vs. current analysis,
• rational resource allocations based on threats vs. agency interests,
• unified personnel practices,
• organizational flexibility,
• the importance of measurement and signature intelligence (MASINT),
• the need for empowered outside oversight,
• analytical vigor including alternative views,
• the need to fully integrate the national security functions of the FBI into the Intelligence Community. “
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