Partial shutdown the U.S. government has continued for more than a month.
On January 22, the Association of FBI agents (FBIAA) has published a report listing «the real impact of government shutdown». In particular, the document contains such problems as the inability to continue an investigation in respect of certain criminal gangs, particularly where required to monitor or to draw the carriers of a foreign language, as the work of linguists and other «external» specialists requires payment. The Prosecutor’s office complains that he can’t issue subpoenas to financial institutions for a Grand jury and send them requests. Payment of informants and the work of the jury has also come under question. According to agents of this Bureau was forced to suspend part of its investigations.
Trump leaves the meeting with the leaders of the Democrats. At that time an agreement is not reached. The shutdown continues. Photo: Shutterstock
We talked with veterans of us intelligence on the subject of any real damage to us security causes the government shutdown.
Glenn Carl, who served in the CIA for 23 years as a Deputy officer responsible for transnational threats, said that the situation is not as catastrophic as, in his opinion, the FBI has the ability to use at least part of its traditional budget and makes funding completely.
«But I really heard that as a result of the shutdown halted all internships, which will definitely cause some damage. In addition, the FBI does not have enough funds on legal costs, the costs of the work crime labs, informants, etc. is Important to emphasize that it is definitely detrimental to national security. It is absolutely true. Without the ability to pay informants, conduct surveillance (which also requires the expenditure), to develop sources, conduct investigations, process and analyze data and reports — of course, the nation is in danger. I know from personal experience that if the FBI is not able to pay the costs associated with the surveillance and other elements of the investigation, the criminals in the truest sense of the word can get away with murder or espionage. I worked in this field and know how it is,» warns the veteran.
Former scout identifies five areas, which can affect the limitation of funding: observation, work with sources, analysis of information, forensic examination and record keeping. However, he lays the blame for what is happening in the first place, personally the President of Donald trump, stressing that throughout the two years of his presidency, his actions actually served the interests of the Kremlin.
«The lack of budget affects all 34 thousand FBI agents from headquarters to the training, laboratory and engineering departments at Quantico and, of course, all 56 regional offices and over 100 field offices around the country, and about 50 legal attaché offices in U.S. embassies around the world. The whole chain of the investigation process as efficient as strong its weakest links. Accordingly, it is sufficient to remove only one link — and the whole process may collapse,» — echoes a veteran of the FBI with 31 years experience — specialist in the fight against organized crime Myron fuller.
«The intelligence coming from human, technical, open or secret sources, is vital to all investigations. The translation and analysis should be carried out in real time, to stop both external and internal attacks on the infrastructure of the United States. Most work of this type is performed at the lowest level, technical and support staff who have suffered most from the shutdown. The absence of one or more persons responsible for the monitoring and collection of information during the day — it’s a gap in the protection which it becomes difficult to prevent crime and espionage. As we have seen in the events of September 11, the lack of an interpreter or the analyst becomes critical when talking about the need to monitor a suspected terrorist. The lack of DNA experts, able to determine a serial killer, or agent who gathers intelligence to prevent another attack to the system of American democracy may also be critical» — fears a former FBI agent.
This is also the opinion of a former senior CIA and FBI don Hepburn.
«The longer this goes on the more scarce resources become, the Bureau, and they have to prioritize their activities and operations. In addition, the decrease in income can impact on the staff,» he said.
Federal employees need to stop the shutdown. Photo: Shutterstock.
The financial problems of the FBI focused and the other is a veteran of the CIA — Christopher Bergers.
«Almost 5 thousand special agents, intelligence analysts, lawyers and support staff sent on leave, and the likelihood that these people will find themselves in a situation of financial uncertainty, it is real. Thus employees are not paid regardless of whether they work actually. Practice shows that financial problems are a disqualifying factor for many applicants to obtain access to the materials constituting a state secret,» he recalls.
Veteran FBI Brent brown stresses that all special agents of the FBI are not allowed to have any income on the side, whether it is a steady income or a temporary job. As for operations, it, according to him, the money may not be enough even for the use of official transportation Bureau.
«And, of course, some people, such as informants from criminal circles, require payment for their services and end up not getting it, as well as employees do not receive salaries. Now passed a bill that at the end of the shutdown they will reimburse the outstanding amount, but at the moment people need to pay bills, some to pay the mortgage, and if they do not do so in time, they will have to pay fines. This, in turn, may affect credit history, and hence on the access to classified information. The longer the shutdown lasts, the worse the situation becomes,» said the veteran.
The Brent brown is inclined to blame the problem both sides: as, the obstinacy of Donald trump wanting to build a wall, and the unwillingness of Democrats to compromise. Nevertheless, he agrees that the shutdown is causing serious damage to national security.
