LETTER TO THE PRESIDENT FROM STANSFIELD TURNER

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP83-00156R000300020020-1
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 15, 2016
• Document Release Date: October 7, 2003
• Sequence Number: 20
• Content Type: LETTER

Approved Fo Iease 20 1 83-0015 003000 00 1
'ry
The President
The White House
Washington, D.C. 20500
Dear Mr. President:
I take this opportunity to bring to your attention and to ask for
your support in solving a problem which I believe could lead to the most
dangerous and debilitating exposure in the history of the Central
Intelligence Agency..
The problem has been created by the passage last year of the Ethics
in Government Act of 1978. As you know, that Act requires all senior
officials of the Government to file annually with their agency a detailed
personal financial report. The Act further provides that unless exempted
by your action copies of such reports, together with a copy of any offi-
cial position description related thereto, must be given to any person
on request anytime within six years from the date the report is filed.
While I understand and support the overall objective of the Act,
the portion requiring the public availability of such reports and
descriptions can only lead to severe damage to our foreign intelligence
capabilities and perhaps even lead to the elimination of the Central
Intelligence Agency as a viable foreign operational arm of the Government.
My concerns stem basically from the impact public disclosure of such
reports would have in the areas of security, counterintelligence, cover,
and foreign relations. Beyond doubt, we will receive requests for these
reports as soon as they are filed. They will then be available for the
world to peruse including foreign embassies, international terrorist
groups and hostile intelligence services bent on rendering the Central
Intelligence Agency useless. Such reports and position descriptions
would with little effort allow anyone to create a blueprint of the
entire superstructure of the Agency. Such a blueprint in hostile hands
would inevitably lead to problems, the magnitude of which would eventually
destroy much of our foreign intelligence capabilities.
Approved For Release 2004/01/29 : CIA-RDP83-00156R000300020020-1
 Approved FoSlease 2004/01/29: CIA-RDP83-001500300020020-1
I therefore urge that, in accordance with Section 205(a) of the
Act, you find that due to the nature of the office or position of all
senior Central Intelligence Agency officials, except the Deputy Director
of Central Intelligence and myself, public disclosure of such reports
would, by revealing the identity of such individuals and other sensi-
tive data, compromise the national security of the United States. In
addition, I urge that you make the appropriate finding which will allow
these same individuals to file such additional reports as are necessary
to protect their identity from public disclosure.
Mr. President, the importance of this matter cannot be overstated.
The very existence of our foreign intelligence capabilities is at stake-
With your permission, I will direct my General Counsel to work with
members of your staff to frame the appropriate documents..
Yours respectfully,.
STANSFIELD TURNER
2
Approved For Release 2004/01/29 : CIA-RDP83-00156R000300020020-1