got geoint?

Welcome to the Monday Morning News Kick Off post from got geoint? As always, we hope everyone had a restful weekend and are geared up for a productive work week. What does this week have in store for us? Well, our crystal ball is a bit fuzzy this morning, but we expect it won’t be as crazy as last week — with the Washington Post story, Clapper confirmation hearing and more — but one never knows. We do know that this weeks MMNKO post has some very compelling news — from more Clapper confirmation news to a story of a meteorite crater being found via Google Earth. So, as we always say, fire up that second cup of coffee and read on!

Full Article

President Obama’s choice to ride herd on U.S. spy agencies boasted yesterday he is no “hood ornament,” and has the clout to stop turf wars. “I would not have agreed to take this position on if I were going to be a titular figurehead or a hood ornament,” retired Air Force Lt. Gen. James Clapper told the Senate Intelligence Committee at his confirmation hearing. Obama nominated Clapper, a career intelligence officer, to replace retired Navy Adm. Dennis Blair as director of National Intelligence, coordinating the efforts of the sprawling intelligence community. Check out the full NY Daily News article here. Also, been a crazy week for the IC. First we had the Washington Post article, then Clapper’s confirmation hearing…what is next? Stay tuned, and be sure to check out our Friday’s Food for Thought post this week.

Full Article

Welcome to the Monday Morning News Kick Off post from got geoint? We hope everyone had a restful Father’s Day weekend. BBQs and family time surely abounded for many this past weekend. Well, now it is time to get back into the flow of work and productivity. As always, we have pulled together a cornucopia of defense-, intelligence- and satellite-related stories to kick start your week on the right foot. So, while you are focused on getting back into the gym and eating health food after the weekend, why don’t you load up on some power food for your brain. Enjoy and happy Monday.

Full Article

Every so often we like to mix things up at got geoint? by occasionally doing news round-ups mid-week. And, with all the news happening in the IC these days, we thought it was appropriate to do a post that highlights all the big news. Of course, we all know that General James Clapper was nominated by President Obama to be the new DNI. And, Congressman C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD) — who spoke at GEOINT 2009 past year — came out with a ringing endorsement of Clapper. In addition, the CIA honored 12 officers and contractors killed in action yesterday. And we have much more. So, fire up that second cup of coffee (yes, we stole this expression from our MMNKO posts) and read on.

Full Article

Welcome once again to the Monday Morning News Kick Off post from got geoint? We hope everyone in the mid-Atlantic region was able to enjoy their hibernation brought on by the massive snow storm that hit this past weekend. Many of you may actually be working from home today because of road conditions. Either way, we hope you are maximizing your WiFi connections and have time to check out this week’s MMNKO post. This week, we have a mixture of stories to share: from extended coverage of last week’s Select Committee on Intelligence hearing to news of Apple rejecting any applications using GPS for location-aware ads and more. Fire up that second cup of coffee and read on!

Full Article

As many of our readers know, Leon Panetta has had a fairly rough go at being the somewhat-new Director of the CIA. Many CIA veterans questioned his lack of formal intel experience, and when he failed to protect the agency from the political backlash over its Bush-era detention and interrogation practices, many felt that he may not be the best man for the job. Recently, however, Panetta has made major strides in overcoming these doubts — especially for successfully defending the agency’s turf from Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair. This week, Time Magazine ran an indepth story about his turnaround, which you can read here. Also, check out this “2 minute bio” from Time as well here.

Full Article

We hope our readers are enjoying the access to the GEOINT 2009 keynote videos. Our intention is to provide a forum for those to re-capture key moments from the event, as well as allow for those who could not attend GEOINT 2009, the opportunity to catch up on presentations that shape the GEOINT community. This morning, we are running the keynote from Mr. Dennis C. Blair, Director of National Intelligence (DNI) who provided a comprehensive view of the recently released “The National Intelligence Strategy,” which sets out the guiding principles: responsive and incisive understanding of global threats and opportunities, coupled with an agility that brings to bear the Community’s capabilities.

Full Article

Today, Mr. Dennis C. Blair, Director of National Intelligence (DNI) took the stage at GEOINT 2009 and provided a comprehensive view of the recently released “The National Intelligence Strategy,” which sets out the guiding principles: responsive and incisive understanding of global threats and opportunities, coupled with an agility that brings to bear the Community’s capabilities. DNI Blair spent time highlighting the document’s goals and objectives and wrapped up the keynote with a history lesson in the Cuban Missile Crisis and how GEOINT played a critical role in resolving the historic confrontation between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. Stay tuned for a video of his presentation.

Full Article

The Department of Defense recently disclosed annual budget documents that reveal the structure and the contents of the Military Intelligence Program (MIP) that supports DoD operations. As many of our readers may know, the U.S. Intelligence Community is funded through two separate budgets: the National Intelligence Program (NIP) and the MIP. Secrecy News recently did a blog post that showcases how the Director of National Intelligence revealed last month that the combined annual cost of the NIP and the MIP is approximately $75 billion. $25 billion of that amount goes to the MIP.

Full Article

Before we dive into the ever-popular Friday’s Food for Thought post, we wanted to share some very important news about the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). As many of our readers know, we have been covering the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) for a while now, and have always made it a priority to cover anything breaking about intelligence agency. Well, you all may recall that Dennis Blair, Dennis Blair, Director of National Intelligence, recently pulled together a panel of high-level intelligence experts to pretty much examine examine every facet of the NRO, including its mission, charter, staffing, requirements, organization, funding and relationship to other organizations. And guess what the next step may be? More power for the NRO.

Full Article