'GAP' IN INTELLIGENCE PUT IN CRITICS' MINDS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP75-00149R000500120035-9
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 15, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 30, 2003
• Sequence Number: 35
• Publication Date: March 8, 1963
• Content Type: NSPR

(ALTIMOR.E 5UX MAR 8 1963
Approved For Release 2004/01/16 : Cl
itlc?(;i>44, director of the Central
Intelligence Agency, and the three
chiefs 'of the separate military
Ido knout, gives him .8 priceless
Jadvantage. `
. "Today's headlines may cost
the lives of the human sources
of information," he continued.
"The enemy cat find our intel-
ligence,sources runnel more easily
when he knovys -what we have
found out. This knowledge helps
to, pinpoint the location ?' of Intel
ligence activities, andonce know-
ing the location, the., discovery
of means is much easier and as
a result intelligence sources dry
up ?
Mahon concluded that. "lrpnma-
turlty and indiscretion';. to "conn
scant disclosures"' was making
the United States the "laughing
stock of the world."
"Officials in Moscow, Peking
and' Havana must applaud our
r Pis-O0I 9ROO0 '11
facts which they would gladly
agencies have all testified bclorc,
congressional committee- with at
least part of their testimony matlej_
public.
11,5 M~cCQne told of the 1,000 lot
00TaRn Americans trained in
ideology or guerrila warfare ord
both in Cuba last year.
Ma_j,..en: A1Lat.,b itch, Army)
intelligence chief, told a Senate
committee recently that Russians-
appear to- be storing complex and
,modern arms, though not mis-
siles, in Cuba caves.
The Air Force intelligence chic),
Ma_j. Geo,..8r st,A. Bceitweis?r,
'testified ' about aerial recon-
Inaissance of Cuba to s' e
Approved For,1 ieai 2O 4 01 g 4 Q
Stennis (D., Miss.).
put, In' .Critics' Minds
6 'f
ate' In Intelligent.e
liahon Also Says Ad-
ininistrati.on Let It-
1 self Be -Goaded Into
Baring Secret Data
By PE'i'E[t J. XU IPA
[Was) ington- bvirw i of 27re Sun]
Washington; lilarch 7-A top
congressional, defense expert to-
day called upon the Administro-
tion and Congre?s, the press and
the people, to end careless and
'loose talk that he said was ruin-
lag American intelligence efforts.
Representative Mahon (D.,
man lit e special
r
TeR1, c airman o p
Military Appropriations subcom-
mittee, called the present situa-
tion `outrageous and intolerable."
lie included both parties and
both the executive and legislative
branches of Government in his
angry criticism delivered on the
Itogse floor shortly after it opened
it.s session.
""Revealing Secrets"
"There has peen talk of an
in-telligence gap," said Mahon.
"There is an intelligence gap. The
;gap is in the intelligence of those
who are daily revealing the se-
crets of the intelligence- operations
of the United States Government."
{ "Critics have made public
statements on matters which
shotild never be discussed in pub-
,lic." said Mahon.
t ag,Adm. Vernon .L-Lowrance,
Chief of Naval Intelligence, last
month testified that it was the
Navy that. was responsible for the
first tip that caused a step-up
l in observation and eventual dis-'
covgry of the ''`offensive Soviet
1build-up In Cuba. The Navy be-
,came suspicious over the sudden
increase in Soviet shipping
Called By. Committees
i'he -military men as well' as
wecalled up -'by `the congres-
tREPRESENTATIVE MAHON
"Anonymity is part of job"
So Mahon blamed tot only them
but senators and congressmen
Iliely who were discusijig matters pub
takenly allowed itself to be goadedthat should" have been
into revealing information detri- talked about behind closed doors.
mental to our best interests," he While most of -the recent dis=
added. ' tcussion of intelligence activities
A top-ranking legislator on the~has revolved around the partisan
special subcommittee handling in-
telligence, Mahon did not mention
names as he complained about
high-ranking intelligence officers
being quoted in the public press.
issue of Cuba, including both the
1961 abortive Bny of Pigs in-
vasion and the October, 1962, mis-
sile showdown with the Soviet
Union,' Mahon blamed the "de-
terioration of secrecy" for the
"Thee are men who, from they 1960 U-2 incident.
standpoint of the general public, "Priceless Advantage"
should neither be seen nor heard," The Texas Democrat asserte
Mahon declared. "A passion for however, that blame for the pa
anonymify is an integral part ofiwas not important as activityfo
their jobs." the future,, -- -
"Headlines are not so precious " s 'To be successful," he said,
to the last. two neck', ,.. John C we know and just which`-ones we 111
snd huge sums of money en-t
deavoring to obtain," the con-
gressman said. -
"1-mot us be silent with respect to
these sensitive matters," he said.
He did not mention the host of
Republicans who have led the way
in disclosing intelligence data on
Cuba, led by Senator toting
(R., N.Y.).
Nor did he mention Democratic
officials such as Robert F. Ken-
rkedyy,~ Attorney- enera , ~(vintse
drscTosure of other information
placed the Administration in a
kinder light.
"coordination Required"
Mahon did - sin&le out Mc(',Dne
rvho''is charged.`by 1av(w'ittTi pro-
tecting intelligence sources and
methods for unauthorized dis-
closure.
"I call on him_ to fully carry
out the dilfic Itand important dut-
ies of his office in this respect,"
said the Texas Democrat. "Al
government-wide coordination of!
effort is required."
d 't d th t fl, A i-
rner
M h
t
o a e
I
a o a mr
n
can people were interested in in-1
telligence activities, particularly;
in the "mystery and aura" that;
surrounded the business.
liut.he warned that the country;
was not playing games in intelli-
gence.
"Further Erosion"
"Our national survival to a
great extent depends upon our
knowledge of our enemies' activi-
ties," said Mahon. "The price we
pay for the luxury of public dis-
closure of intelligence activities is
the further erosion of our capabili-
ties-in this field."
Mahon . said' - it was difficult
enough getting information froml
'closed Communist societies. Pub-i
licity on the intelligence made itl
more difficult, he added.
Representative Rogers (D.,
FIa.) o ay continned his' daily
demands that a joint congres-
sional vrdtchdog committee be set;
up to review the work of CIA. }
Part of his reasoning is simi-
.G35o.9Mahon's, simply to - e-
serve intelligence secrecy.