Rep. Jim Himes, D-4th District, has won a seat on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, which has authority over the budgets for the CIA and 16 other U.S. intelligence agencies and investigates problems at those agencies.
“I am excited and proud to have been appointed to the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence at a time when asymmetric and unconventional threats to our nation will be increasingly identified and countered by our intelligence community,” Himes said in a statement. “As the recent discussion of the American use of drone technology has illustrated, it is more important than ever that we carefully balance our nation’s security needs with fundamental civil liberties and core national values.”
We won’t know much of what Himes does in his new job, however.
The work of the intelligence panel is largely done behind closed doors. Even the budgets of the CIA and other intelligence agencies are top secret.
Himes said he will keep his old job on the House Committee on Financial Services, which does operate in the open, at least for the most part.