MOYNIHAN TO SEEK CURBS ON USE OF SPIES BY INTELLIGENCE AGENCIES

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00552R000404440190-7
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 27, 2010
• Sequence Number: 190
• Publication Date: May 6, 1980
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/08/27: CIA-RDP90-00552R000404440190-7
4ZTICLI~ APPEARED
N AGL
O
PTt;'.?1 YORK TIMES
6 I AY 1.980
oyni han to ex ,urbs on Use
Of Spies intelligence Agencies
By CHARLES MOHR
Special toTbe New York Times
ASHINGTON, May 5-Senator Dan-
iel Patrick Moynihan plans to propose
ton orrowa flat legal prohibition against
the tzec-rrt use of journalists, clergymen
or academicians as spies or informers for
L'n i tad.States intelligence agencies.
The -New- York' Democrat's: proposal
will also seek to prohibit intelligence'
agents from posing as, members of reli-
gious, journalistic or academic institu-
tions. Mr. Moynihan said that he would
offer the proposals as an amendment
when the Senate Select Committee on In-
telligence meets tomorrow to begin ac-
tion on legislation affecting intelligence
agencies_
Meanwhile, Representative Les Aspire,
Democrat o! Wisconsin, said today that
the Carter Administration had commit-
ted "a major breach of security" by dis=
closing to the news media details of the
aborted plan to rescue Alnerican.'hos-
Mr. Aspin charged that the disclosures
by unidentified sources might have
threatened the lives of Iranians who were
secretly willing to help the United States
and that they might discourage other for-
eigners from secretly cooperating. with
American intelligence officers.
The Senate Intelligence Committee
concluded last week that a proposed
legislative code, or charter, outlining
both authorized and prohibited proce-
dures and practices for intelligence agen-
cies could not be passed in Congress this
year.
When the committee meets tomorrow
it will, at first, consider a drastically
shortened bill proposed by Senator Wal-
ter D. Huddleston, Democrat of Ken-
tucky, who had been a chief-advocate of
the now moribund charter. The charter
would have forbidden the Central Intelli-
gence Agency to use journalistic, reli-
gious and . academic institutions as
"cover" but would not have flatly prohib-
ited the agency from using members off
those institutions in covert intelligence
roles::
S- nator Moynihan said that "the issue)
of immunity-of the press from intelli
gence activity, having been raised, must)
be- settled. His proposed amendment
would forbid any agency of the. Govern-
ment to hire, full- or. part-time, any
American citizen or alien with perma-
nent residence status who "is a member
of a religious, media or academic organi-
zation," if the relationship between the
person and the Government "is to be con-
cealed from public."
It also says that no employee of the
Government shall "pose" as a member of
such institutions "in order-to conceal his
true relationship with the department or
agency employing him." -
The White House has strongly opposed
such flat protection for the "integrity" of
the journalistic, religious and academic
community. Administration sources have
privately said that one reason for this
position is that such a law would virtually
restrict the intelligence agency's legally
permitted."covers" to businessmen, and
might hamper clandestine intelligence
gathering.
Among the "disclosures" cited by Mr.-
Aspin were reports that American agents
had been infiltrated into ran -poste as
uropean businessmen and hints that
na or s were invo ved in- the
aborted rescue plan.
Such information, he said, was
"clearly leaked to the press in an effort to
save the Administration from looking
foolish" by making the plan seem as l
plausible as possible to the public.
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/08/27: CIA-RDP90-00552R000404440190-7