The U.S. House Intelligence Committee - with Ranking Member Congressman Jim Himes

Summary

Jim Himes (Website; X) joins Andrew (X; LinkedIn) to discuss the U.S. House Intelligence Committee. Jim has served as the U.S. representative for Connecticut’s 4th congressional district since 2009. 

What You’ll Learn

Intelligence

• The House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence: Its role and operations
• The importance of bipartisan collaboration
• Transparency and accountability in intelligence 
• Congressman Himes' personal experiences during 9/11, its impact on his career in intelligence, and 9/11’s impact on intelligence at large

Reflections

• Public trust and earning confidence
• Partnership and cooperation

And much, much more …

Quotes of the Week

“I get asked all the time, ‘Oh my gosh, you see all the threats. Do you sleep at night?’ … Yes, I do see with particularly exquisite detail the threats against us. I also get to see the detail of the assets and the people that we deploy against those threats. And because I get to see with great detail the assets and the tools that we have to address those threats, yes, I do sleep at night. Not because they will ever be perfect, but because these are incredibly dedicated people, the technology is amazing, and it is commensurate with the threats out there.” -Jim Himes

Resources 

SURFACE SKIM

*SpyCasts*

• Digital Innovation and the Next Frontier of Intelligence with Jennifer Ewbank (2024)
• The Future of OSINT and the Intelligence Community with Jason Barrett (2024)
• The Future of NATO with Leon Panetta and Expert Panel (2024)
• CIA Director, Defense Secretary, Gentleman with Leon Panetta (2024)

DEEPER DIVE

Books

• Sies, Lies, and Algorithms: The History and Future of American Intelligence, A. B. Zegart (Princeton University Press, 2022)
• The Secret World: A History of Intelligence, C. Andrew (Yale University Press, 2019)
• The First Congress: How James Madison, George Washington, and a Group of Extraordinary Men Invented the Government, F. M. Bordewich (Simon & Schuster, 2016)

Primary Sources 

• House Intelligence Committee COVID-19 Report (2022)
• Unclassified Summary of the Second Interim Report on the Origins of the COVID-19 Pandemic (2022)
• House Intelligence Committee Report on Russian Active Measures (2018)
• Snowden Report (2016)
• The 9/11 Commission Report (2004) 

H. Res. 658 (1977)

*Wildcard Resource*

• One of Connecticut’s very first representatives