President's Intelligence Advisory Board

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President's Intelligence Advisory Board
Advisor overview
FormedJanuary 1956 (1956-01)
JurisdictionUnited States
Advisor executive
Child Advisor
  • Intelligence Oversight Board
WebsitePresident's Intelligence Advisory Board and Intelligence Oversight Board Website

The President's Intelligence Advisory Board (PIAB) is an advisory body to the Executive Office of the President of the United States. According to its self-description, it "provides advice to the President concerning the quality and adequacy of intelligence collection, of analysis and estimates, of counterintelligence, and of other intelligence activities."[1]

The PIAB, through its Intelligence Oversight Board (IOB), also advises the President on the legality of foreign intelligence activities.

History[edit]

In January 1956 President Dwight D. Eisenhower created the agency, originally known as the President's Board of Consultants on Foreign Intelligence Activities (PBCFIA).[2] The first board, under chair James Killian, included the following members:[3]

In May 1961, President John F. Kennedy renamed it to the President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board (PFIAB).[4]

The board exists at the pleasure of the President, who can change its size and portfolio so in 1977 President Jimmy Carter abolished the PFIAB, but President Ronald Reagan re-established it later.[5]

On February 29, 2008, President George W. Bush renamed the agency to President's Intelligence Advisory Board, its present form.[6]

Most of the board's work is secret, but one very public investigation involved the loss of U.S. nuclear secrets to China from the Los Alamos National Laboratory during the 1990s.[7]

Intelligence Oversight Board[edit]

President Gerald Ford created the IOB following a 1975–76 investigation by the US Congress into domestic spying, assassination operations, and other abuses by intelligence agencies. His executive order doing so went into effect on March 1, 1976.[8] In 1993, the IOB became a committee of the PFIAB, under Executive Order #12863 of President Bill Clinton.

One of the IOB's functions is to examine violations of the laws and directives governing clandestine surveillance. The IOB received quarterly and annual reports from most US intelligence activities.[9] Thirteen cases involving FBI actions between 2002 and 2004 were referred to the IOB for its review.[10]

In an executive order issued on February 29, 2008, President George W. Bush terminated the IOB's authority to oversee the general counsel and inspector general of each U.S. intelligence agency, and erased the requirement that each inspector general file a report with the IOB every three months. The order also removed the IOB's authority to refer a matter to the Justice Department for a criminal investigation, and directed the IOB to notify the president of a problem only if other officials are not already "adequately" addressing that problem.[8]

In August 2013 it was reported that the membership of the IOB had been reduced from 14 to 4 under President Barack Obama, possibly starting in early May at the beginning of the 2013 mass surveillance disclosures by Edward Snowden.[11] The membership had not been increased as of July 2014.[12]

Membership[edit]

During the administration of President George W. Bush, the PIAB had 16 members selected from among distinguished citizens outside the government who were qualified "on the basis of achievement, experience, independence, and integrity." The members were not paid.[13]

PIAB membership is generally considered public information; for example, the Clinton Administration posted the names of the members on a PFIAB web page,[13] and the Trump Administration issued a press release announcing the nominations of new members.[14]

George W. Bush[edit]

In August 2002, Randy Deitering, the executive director of PFIAB, confirmed the membership list released by the White House press office in October 2001:[15]

In 2003, there were indications of spying on members of the board by a foreign intelligence asset.[citation needed]

Barack Obama[edit]

The entire PIAB membership that served under the administration of George W. Bush resigned as part of an agreed-upon move in the presidential transition of Barack Obama.[16]

President Obama appointed Chuck Hagel, former United States Senator from Nebraska, and current University of Oklahoma President David Boren as PIAB co-chairs.[17]

The following other members were appointed to the board under President Obama:[18]

In May 2013, the White House dismissed 10 members of the board.[23] The four remaining members of the PIAB were:[1]

  • Richard Danzig
  • Daniel Meltzer
  • Jami Miscik
  • Mona Sutphen

In August 2014, President Obama nominated six new members:[24]

Donald Trump[edit]

President Donald Trump named the following persons to the PIAB:[25]

In February 2019, President Trump named three additional members:[14]

In May 2019, President Trump named Ray Washburne as an additional member.[26][27]

Joe Biden[edit]

In May 2022, President Joe Biden named the below persons to the PIAB.[28]

In June 2022, he named Evan Bayh to the PIAB.[29]

In October 2022, he named Anne Finucane to the PIAB.[30]

In November 2022, he named Mark Angelson to the PIAB.[31]

In January 2023, he named Margaret Hamburg, Kim Cobb, and Kneeland Youngblood to the PIAB.[32]

In March 2023, he named Hamilton E. James and Julia Santucci to the PIAB.[33]

PIAB chairs[edit]

PIAB chairpersons have been:[34]

Officeholder Term start Term end President
James Killian January 13, 1956 March 1, 1958 Dwight Eisenhower
John Hull March 1, 1958 January 20, 1961
Vacant January 20, 1961 May 4, 1961 John F. Kennedy
James Killian May 4, 1961 April 23, 1963
John F. Kennedy

Lyndon Johnson

Clark Clifford April 23, 1963 February 29, 1968
Max Taylor February 29, 1968 May 1, 1970
Richard Nixon
George Anderson May 1, 1970 March 11, 1976
Gerald Ford
Leo Cherne March 11, 1976 May 4, 1977
Jimmy Carter
Board abolished May 4, 1977 October 20, 1981
Anne Armstrong October 20, 1981 July 17, 1990 Ronald Reagan
George H. W. Bush
John Tower July 17, 1990 April 5, 1991
Bobby Inman
Acting
April 5, 1991 January 20, 1993
William Crowe January 20, 1993 May 26, 1994 Bill Clinton
Les Aspin May 26, 1994 May 21, 1995
Warren Rudman
Acting
May 21, 1995 January 16, 1996
Tom Foley January 16, 1996 November 19, 1997
Warren Rudman
Acting: 1997–1998
November 19, 1997 October 5, 2001
George W. Bush
Brent Scowcroft October 5, 2001 February 25, 2005
Jim Langdon February 25, 2005 December 20, 2005
Steve Friedman December 20, 2005 October 28, 2009
Barack Obama
David Boren
Chuck Hagel
October 28, 2009 February 27, 2013
Vacant February 27, 2013 August 29, 2014
Shirley Ann Jackson
Jami Miscik
August 29, 2014 January 20, 2017
Steve Feinberg May 12, 2018 January 20, 2021 Donald Trump
Sandy Winnefeld May 4, 2022 present Joe Biden

IOB chairs[edit]

These are chairs of the Advisory Board's committee of Intelligence Oversight Board

Officeholder Term start Term end President
Robert Murphy March 11, 1976 May 5, 1977 Gerald Ford
Jimmy Carter
Thomas Farmer May 5, 1977 October 20, 1981
Ronald Reagan
Glenn Campbell October 20, 1981 February 26, 1990
George H. W. Bush
Jim Thompson February 26, 1990 January 20, 1993
William Crowe January 20, 1993 May 26, 1994 Bill Clinton
Anthony Harrington May 26, 1994 February 8, 2000
Warren Rudman
Acting
February 8, 2000 October 5, 2001
George W. Bush
Brent Scowcroft October 5, 2001 February 25, 2005
Jim Langdon February 25, 2005 December 20, 2005
Steve Friedman December 20, 2005 October 28, 2009
Barack Obama
Chuck Hagel October 28, 2009 February 27, 2013
Dan Meltzer February 27, 2013 May 24, 2015
Neal Wolin May 24, 2015 January 20, 2017
Steve Feinberg[35] August 16, 2018 January 20, 2021 Donald Trump

Board executive directors[edit]

  • 1956–1959: John Cassidy
  • 1959–1961, 1961–1970: Patrick Coyne
  • 1970–1973: Gerard Burke
  • 1973–1977: Wheaton Byers
  • 1977: Lionel Olmer
  • 1977–1981: Board abolished
  • 1981–1983: Norman Wood
  • 1983–1984: Fred Demech
  • 1984–1988: Gary Schmitt
  • 1988–1989: Fred Demech
  • 1989–1991: Nina Stewart
  • 1991–1992: Vacant
  • 1992–1995: Eugene Yeates
  • 1995–2003: Randy Deitering (Acting: 1995–1998)
  • 2003–2005: Joan Dempsey
  • 2005–2017: Stefanie Osburn

Board members[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b PIAB Official Website. Archived 2017-01-20 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ "Dwight D. Eisenhower: Executive Order 10656—Establishing the President's Board of Consultants on Foreign Intelligence Activities". www.presidency.ucsb.edu.
  3. ^ Edwards, Philip K. (Summer 1969). "The President's Board: 1956–1960, Overseeing the intelligence community". Studies in Intelligence. Central Intelligence Agency. p. 114. Archived from the original on January 23, 2017.
  4. ^ Executive Orders (1961)
  5. ^ The Issue Wonk. National Policy Facts and Analysis. Issuewonk.com. Retrieved on 2013-08-16.
  6. ^ Executive Orders (2008)
  7. ^ Bill Getrz, "Covert board called crucial to presidents", The Washington Times, June 16, 2008, Page A1
  8. ^ a b Charlie Savage, "President weakens espionage oversight: Board created by Ford loses most of its power", Boston Globe, March 14, 2008
  9. ^ Electronic Frontier Foundation Archived 2011-10-07 at the Wayback Machine
  10. ^ Dan Eggen, "FBI Papers Indicate Intelligence Violations: Secret Surveillance Lacked Oversight", Washington Post, 23 October 2005
  11. ^ Gerstein, Josh (August 15, 2013). "Obama upends intel panel". Politico.
  12. ^ "Members".
  13. ^ a b David Corn, "Who's On PFIAB?--A New Bush Secret", The Nation (blog), August 14, 2002, retrieved December 31, 2012
  14. ^ a b "President Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Appoint Individuals to Key Administration Posts". whitehouse.gov. February 4, 2019. Retrieved February 12, 2019 – via National Archives.
  15. ^ David Corn, "Who's On PFIAB-A Bush Secret...Or Not? UPDATED" The Nation (blog), August 14, 2002, retrieved March 15, 2008
  16. ^ Texas oilman Ray Hunt is no longer serving as a presidential adviser on intelligence issues
  17. ^ "Remarks by the President Before Meeting with the President's Intelligence Advisory Board Co-Chairmen and Senior Leadership of the Intelligence Community" (Press release). Office of the Press Secretary. October 28, 2009. Archived from the original on February 16, 2017. Retrieved December 4, 2009.
  18. ^ "President Obama Announces Members of the President's Intelligence Advisory Board" (Press release). Office of the Press Secretary. December 23, 2009. Archived from the original on February 16, 2017.
  19. ^ a b "President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts" (Press release). Office of the Press Secretary. December 1, 2010. Retrieved December 31, 2012.
  20. ^ White House Press Secretary, President Obama Announces Members of the President's Intelligence Advisory Board, December 23, 2009
  21. ^ a b "President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts" (Press release). Office of the Press Secretary. September 6, 2011. Retrieved December 31, 2012.
  22. ^ "President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts" (Press release). Office of the Press Secretary. April 27, 2011.
  23. ^ "Obama upends intel panel". Politico. August 15, 2013.
  24. ^ Aliya Sternstein (August 29, 2014). "Obama Resurrects Intel Advisory Panel". Retrieved February 12, 2019.
  25. ^ Steven Nelson (November 21, 2018). "Trump names hand-picked panel to supervise, investigate intelligence community". Retrieved February 12, 2019.
  26. ^ Ferran, Lee (August 28, 2019). "Trump's secretive intelligence advisory board takes shape with security pros and GOP donors". ABC News. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
  27. ^ "President Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Nominate and Appoint Personnel to Key Administration Posts". whitehouse.gov. May 20, 2019. Retrieved April 14, 2020 – via National Archives.
  28. ^ "President Biden Announces Appointments to the President's Intelligence Advisory Board and the National Science Board". The White House. May 4, 2022. Archived from the original on May 4, 2022. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  29. ^ "President Biden Announces Key Appointments". June 15, 2022.
  30. ^ "President Biden Announces Key Appointments to Boards and Commissions". The White House. October 14, 2022. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
  31. ^ "President Biden Announces Key Appointments to Boards and Commissions". The White House. November 22, 2022. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  32. ^ "President Biden Announces Key Appointments to Boards and Commissions". The White House. January 26, 2023. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  33. ^ "President Biden Announces Key Appointments to Boards and Commissions". The White House. March 3, 2023. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
  34. ^ PFIAB Chairpersons, The White House website, retrieved March 14, 2008
  35. ^ "President Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Nominate, Designate, and Appoint Personnel to Key Administration Posts". whitehouse.gov. August 16, 2018. Retrieved February 12, 2019 – via National Archives.

External links[edit]