WASHINGTON — Five years after undergoing sweeping reforms, the nation's spy agencies continue to be hobbled by turf battles, incompatible computer systems and uncertainty over their legal boundaries, according to a harshly critical report issued Wednesday by the intelligence community's internal watchdog.
Although Congress created the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, or DNI, to cut through such obstacles, the report concluded that a majority of intelligence workers were so confused about the director's office that they "were unable to articulate a clear understanding of [his] mission, roles and responsibilities."
Overall, the report suggests that a major shake-up of the U.S. intelligence community in 2004 has not solved many of the problems that plagued spy agencies and contributed to their failures leading up to the Sept. 11 attacks and the Iraq war.
In delivering the document, DNI Inspector General Edward Maguire said progress had been made since the report was completed in November, particularly with the issuing of new rules designed to force intelligence agencies to do a better job sharing information.
Still, the dismal findings were greeted with dismay on Capitol Hill, particularly among House members who have been critical of the expansion of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence since it was launched in 2005.
Congress wanted a "lean, coordinated body," said Rep. Sue Myrick of North Carolina, the ranking Republican on a House subcommittee on intelligence community management. Instead, Myrick said, "we got fat, layer upon layer of bloated bureaucracy at the top of the community."
Rep. Anna G. Eshoo (D-Menlo Park), who chairs the subcommittee, said the report reflected a failure to achieve some of the basic goals of reform. A 15-page, unclassified version of the report was released as part of a subcommittee hearing Wednesday.
"I, for one, don't believe that the vision laid out in the reform act has been met," Eshoo said. "We still don't have a clear definition of the DNI's role nor a clear view of how the agencies should work together." Since the report was completed, the intelligence community has undergone a significant leadership turnover as the Obama administration replaced top-level officials appointed by President George W. Bush.
