Secrecy News – The Purpose of National Security Policy declassified

THE PURPOSE OF NATIONAL SECURITY POLICY, DECLASSIFIED

The most fundamental purpose of national security policy is not to keep
the nation safe from physical attack but to defend the constitutional
order.  At least, that is what President Reagan wrote in a Top Secret 1986
directive.

"The primary objective of U.S. foreign and security policy is to protect
the integrity of our democratic institutions and promote a peaceful global
environment in which they can thrive," President Reagan wrote in National
Security Decision Directive 238 on "Basic National Security Strategy,"
which was partially declassified in 2005.

        http://www.fas.org/irp/offdocs/nsdd/nsdd-238.pdf

In a list of national security objectives, the directive does note the
imperative "to protect the United States... from military, paramilitary, or
terrorist attack."

But that is not the primary objective, according to the Reagan directive. 
Defense of the Constitution evidently takes precedence.

The first purpose of national security policy is "to preserve the
political identity, framework and institutions of the United States as
embodied in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution,"
President Reagan wrote.

This is a remarkable statement, for several reasons.  First, it recognizes
that the political identity and institutions of the United States are not
simply a given, but that they are vulnerable to many types of threats and
must be actively defended and sustained.  This task is not normally
assigned the urgency or the priority given to "national security."

Second, the directive distinguishes between constitutional governance and
physical security. Not every measure intended to promote security is
constitutional.  And not every act in defense of democratic self-governance
is likely to promote public safety.  (The American Revolution was not
calculated to increase "homeland security." Quite the opposite.)  Sometimes
a choice between the two is required.  President Reagan indicated what he
thought the choice should be.

And third, the directive is remarkable because its rhetoric was so
imperfectly realized by the Reagan Administration (and egregiously defied
in the Iran-Contra Affair) and has been largely abandoned by its
successors.

"Defending our Nation against its enemies is the first and fundamental
commitment of the Federal Government," wrote President George W. Bush in
his 2002 National Security Strategy, skipping over President Reagan's
"primary" objective.

Likewise, "As President, I have often said that I have no greater
responsibility than protecting the American people," President Obama wrote
in his National Strategy for Counterterrorism.

The Reagan directive invites reflection on what U.S. national security
policy would look like if it were truly structured above all "to protect
the integrity of our democratic institutions."

In a section of the directive that was only classified Confidential,
President Reagan contrasted the U.S. with the Soviet Union, which was
described as its polar opposite.

"Our way of life, founded upon the dignity and worth of the individual,
depends on a stable and pluralistic world order within which freedom and
democratic institutions can thrive.  Yet, the greatest threat to the Soviet
system, in which the State controls the destiny of the individual, is the
concept of freedom itself."

"The survival of the Soviet system depends to a significant extent upon
the persistent and exaggerated representation of foreign threats, through
which it seeks to justify both the subjugation of its own people and the
expansion of Soviet military capabilities well beyond those required for
self-defense," President Reagan wrote.

Numerous Presidential directives from the Reagan Administration have been
declassified in recent years and have released by the Reagan Library,
though others still remain partially or completely classified.

Many of the declassified directives provide a fascinating account that
enlarges and enriches the public record of events of the time.  

        http://www.fas.org/irp/offdocs/nsdd/index.html

Only last year, for example, a 1985 directive (NSDD-172) on "Presenting
the Strategic Defense Initiative" was finally declassified.

        http://www.fas.org/irp/offdocs/nsdd/nsdd-172.pdf

This year, NSDD 159 on "Covert Action Policy Approval and Coordination
Procedures" (1985) was declassified.

        http://www.fas.org/irp/offdocs/nsdd/nsdd-159.pdf

NSDD 207 on "The National Program for Combatting Terrorism" (1986) was
declassified in 2008.

        http://www.fas.org/irp/offdocs/nsdd/nsdd-207.pdf

Among other things, that directive ordered the Attorney General to "Review
the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and determine whether terrorist
movements or organizations are abusing its provisions."

JOB GROWTH DURING THE RECOVERY, AND MORE FROM CRS

New and updated reports from the Congressional Research Service that
Congress has not made available to the public include the following.

Job Growth During the Recovery, updated October 16, 2012:

        http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R41434.pdf

The President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR): Funding Issues
After a Decade of Implementation, FY2004-FY2013, October 10, 2012:

        http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R42776.pdf

Statutes of Limitation in Federal Criminal Cases: An Overview, updated
October 1, 2012:

        http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL31253.pdf

Venezuela: Issues for Congress, updated October 16, 2012:

        http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/R40938.pdf

Georgia's October 2012 Legislative Election: Outcome and Implications,
October 15, 2012:

        http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/R42777.pdf

Iran Sanctions, updated October 15, 2012:

        http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/RS20871.pdf

_______________________________________________
Secrecy News is written by Steven Aftergood and published by the
Federation of American Scientists.

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_______________________
Steven Aftergood
Project on Government Secrecy
Federation of American Scientists
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email:  saftergood@fas.org
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twitter: @saftergood