Law enforcement official says threat center could be permanent

Three top federal law enforcement officials on Tuesday defended the evolving process the government is using to analyze and share information about terrorist activities.

The officials testified before the Senate Judiciary Immigration and Border Security Subcommittee.

John Brennan, director of the Terrorist Threat Integration Center (TTIC), said a TTIC Web site is up and running. The secure site includes center analysis and links to other counter-terrorism reports, he said. It is accessible to 2,500 people, he said, with the ultimate goal of offering access on less-sensitive levels. From there, the FBI and the Homeland Security Department will be responsible for sharing some of the information with state and local authorities.

Brennan told Technology Daily when asked whether TTIC would be temporary, "I'm in it for the long haul."

"I think there's a real need for the TTIC mission. I don't see it going away," he said.

Larry Mefford, executive assistant director of the FBI counterterrorism-counterintelligence division, described several initiatives underway. He said information is shared with 84 Joint Terrorism Task Forces throughout the nation, which involve 3,000 agents. He also said information is uploaded to a database accessible by the State Department, which can send notification if a "hit" is made on a name. That system has had more than 97,000 visa review requests in its two years of existence.

Mefford sought to clarify that the information-analysis efforts at TTIC are separate from the statutorily mandated analysis that must take place at the Homeland Security Department.

But Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., raised questions about the creation of information analysis centers outside of Homeland Security.

"It seems to me ... [the creation of TTIC] is just going to put the Department of Homeland Security out in left field," Feinstein said. CIA is not historically good at sharing information, she said.

Speaking of information-sharing with states and localities, Feinstein said, "I can tell you gentlemen, the information doesn't flow."

Brennan insisted that TTIC is not part of the CIA and does not report directly to the agency, but rather is a multi-agency cooperative center. Brennan reports directly to George Tenet in his capacity as director of central intelligence, which is distinct from the CIA, he said. But he also takes direction from Homeland Security, FBI and the National Security Administration. "I'm not CIA," Brennan said. "I'm a U.S. government official."

Brennan said a separate Terrorist Screening Center-a combining of terrorist watch lists announced last week-is needed because TTIC does not have the authority to decide what to do with suspected terrorists.

William Parrish, acting Homeland Security assistant secretary for information analysis, said his directorate has "a robust, comprehensive, and independent access to information-raw and processed, collected domestically and abroad-relevant to analyzing terrorist threats to the homeland."

Parrish said Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge supports the initial creation of the Terrorist Screening Center under the FBI because of the effort to begin its operations by Dec. 1, with "necessary connectivity." But he said there will be a 180-day review to see how the center is doing and there will be a review of its structure and location. Homeland Security is a "major" user in the center, he added.