In brief: Obama names new White House counsel
Washington – President Barack Obama is turning to Neil Eggleston, a veteran of the Whitewater and Iran-Contra confrontations between Capitol Hill and the White House, to help guide his administration through what could be stormy years ahead with Congress.
Obama on Monday named Eggleston, a Washington lawyer who specializes in representing high-profile public figures in government investigations, as the next White House counsel. He replaces Kathryn Ruemmler, who has been seeking to vacate the White House hot seat for months.
If Republicans take control of the Senate and keep the House in November elections, Eggleston’s past experiences as associate White House counsel for President Bill Clinton during the Whitewater congressional hearings and deputy chief counsel of the House Iran-Contra Committee could put him on solid ground.
Intelligence director limits talks with journalists
Washington – Employees of U.S. intelligence agencies have been barred from discussing any intelligence-related matter – even if it isn’t classified – with journalists without authorization, according to a new directive by Director of National Intelligence James Clapper.
Intelligence agency employees who violate the policy could suffer career-ending losses of their security clearances or outright termination, and those who disclose classified information might face criminal prosecution, according to the directive, which Clapper signed March 20 but was made public only Monday by Steven Aftergood, who runs the Federation of American Scientists’ Project on Government Secrecy.
Under the order, only the director or deputy head of an intelligence agency, public affairs officials and those authorized by public affairs officials may have contact with journalists on intelligence-related matters.
Search-rescue group fights ban on drones
Houston – A Texas-based group involved in searches for missing persons around the nation filed a lawsuit on Monday asking a federal court to set aside an order that prohibits the nonprofit from employing drones in its work.
Texas EquuSearch had been ordered in February to stop using unmanned aircraft systems, commonly referred to as drones, in its searches. The suburban Houston group’s fleet of four unmanned model aircraft that are equipped with cameras has been grounded since then.
The lawsuit filed in a Washington, D.C., appeals court says there is no basis in law to prohibit the operation of model aircraft for humanitarian search and rescue activities. The volunteer group is financed through private donations and has participated in such high-profile cases as the search for Natalee Holloway, the U.S. teenager who disappeared in 2005 in Aruba, and the search for 2-year-old Caylee Anthony in Florida.