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As critics warned could happen, President Trump quickly lifted many of the late-Obama-era limits while ramping up the government's use of lethal drones abroad and reportedly putting the CIA back in the drone business.(Photo: Think Defense/Flickr)
Trump Is Unshackling America's Drones Thanks to Obama's Weakness
CIA’s operation of drones to hunt and kill terrorism suspects — a campaign that has killed thousands of people, including hundreds of children, in places like Pakistan, Yemen, and Somalia — remains an official secret
Sep 21, 2018
The piece was originally published by The Guardian.
For more than a decade, the worst-kept secret in the world has been the fact that the Central Intelligence Agency owns and operates lethal drones outside of recognized battlefields abroad. Newspapers blare it from their headlines. Legislators discuss it on television. Foreign governments protest it through press releases. And, of course, human beings witness it through the death and destruction foisted upon their communities.
Still, according to the U.S. government and the federal courts, the CIA's operation of drones to hunt and kill terrorism suspects -- a campaign that has killed thousands of people, including hundreds of children, in places like Pakistan, Yemen, and Somalia -- remains an official secret.
Toward the end of the Obama administration, the president moderately circumscribedthe agency's role in executing lethal strikes abroad, in part to increase public transparency. Compared to the U.S. military (which also uses lethal force abroad), the CIA is relatively less accountable to policymakers, members of Congress, and the American public. With a diminished role in targeted killings, it appeared then that the CIA's official secrecy was becoming less important to the overall drone program. But as critics warned could happen, President Trump quickly lifted many of the late-Obama-era limits while ramping up the government's use of lethal drones abroad and reportedly putting the CIA back in the drone business.
Read the rest at The Guardian
An Unconstitutional Rampage
Trump and Musk are on an unconstitutional rampage, aiming for virtually every corner of the federal government. These two right-wing billionaires are targeting nurses, scientists, teachers, daycare providers, judges, veterans, air traffic controllers, and nuclear safety inspectors. No one is safe. The food stamps program, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are next. It’s an unprecedented disaster and a five-alarm fire, but there will be a reckoning. The people did not vote for this. The American people do not want this dystopian hellscape that hides behind claims of “efficiency.” Still, in reality, it is all a giveaway to corporate interests and the libertarian dreams of far-right oligarchs like Musk. Common Dreams is playing a vital role by reporting day and night on this orgy of corruption and greed, as well as what everyday people can do to organize and fight back. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover issues the corporate media never will, but we can only continue with our readers’ support. |
© 2023 ACLU
Brett Max Kaufman
Brett Max Kaufman is a staff attorney in the ACLU's Center for Democracy, where he works primarily on national security issues.
The piece was originally published by The Guardian.
For more than a decade, the worst-kept secret in the world has been the fact that the Central Intelligence Agency owns and operates lethal drones outside of recognized battlefields abroad. Newspapers blare it from their headlines. Legislators discuss it on television. Foreign governments protest it through press releases. And, of course, human beings witness it through the death and destruction foisted upon their communities.
Still, according to the U.S. government and the federal courts, the CIA's operation of drones to hunt and kill terrorism suspects -- a campaign that has killed thousands of people, including hundreds of children, in places like Pakistan, Yemen, and Somalia -- remains an official secret.
Toward the end of the Obama administration, the president moderately circumscribedthe agency's role in executing lethal strikes abroad, in part to increase public transparency. Compared to the U.S. military (which also uses lethal force abroad), the CIA is relatively less accountable to policymakers, members of Congress, and the American public. With a diminished role in targeted killings, it appeared then that the CIA's official secrecy was becoming less important to the overall drone program. But as critics warned could happen, President Trump quickly lifted many of the late-Obama-era limits while ramping up the government's use of lethal drones abroad and reportedly putting the CIA back in the drone business.
Read the rest at The Guardian
Brett Max Kaufman
Brett Max Kaufman is a staff attorney in the ACLU's Center for Democracy, where he works primarily on national security issues.
The piece was originally published by The Guardian.
For more than a decade, the worst-kept secret in the world has been the fact that the Central Intelligence Agency owns and operates lethal drones outside of recognized battlefields abroad. Newspapers blare it from their headlines. Legislators discuss it on television. Foreign governments protest it through press releases. And, of course, human beings witness it through the death and destruction foisted upon their communities.
Still, according to the U.S. government and the federal courts, the CIA's operation of drones to hunt and kill terrorism suspects -- a campaign that has killed thousands of people, including hundreds of children, in places like Pakistan, Yemen, and Somalia -- remains an official secret.
Toward the end of the Obama administration, the president moderately circumscribedthe agency's role in executing lethal strikes abroad, in part to increase public transparency. Compared to the U.S. military (which also uses lethal force abroad), the CIA is relatively less accountable to policymakers, members of Congress, and the American public. With a diminished role in targeted killings, it appeared then that the CIA's official secrecy was becoming less important to the overall drone program. But as critics warned could happen, President Trump quickly lifted many of the late-Obama-era limits while ramping up the government's use of lethal drones abroad and reportedly putting the CIA back in the drone business.
Read the rest at The Guardian
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