Congressional Research Service. May 14, 2012.
Interest in congressional oversight of intelligence has risen again in recent Congresses, in part because of disputes over reporting to Congress by intelligence community (IC) components on sensitive matters, including developments generated by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The changes in the oversight structure adopted or proposed in recent Congresses, however, also reflect earlier concerns, such as increasing independent auditing authority for the Government Accountability Office (GAO) over the intelligence community, adding offices of inspectors general (OIGs), clarifying reporting requirements to Congress, and restructuring Congress’s oversight mechanisms.
http://fpc.state.gov/documents/organization/190155.pdf [41 pages].
Center for Strategic and International Studies. May 9, 2012.
The report analyses both the metrics and narrative in recent reports, and finds they fail to focus on key aspects of the war. They ignore the fact that victory will be defined as the ability of the government to defeat insurgents at the political level, through successful governance, through economic incentives and security, through measurable popular support, and through local and national security. Meaningful progress towards victory is determined by the level of progress in all of these areas, and must be measured in net assessment terms: progress towards victory in a strategic sense is the rate of overall success of the government relative to the insurgent influence and control. [Note: contains copyrighted material].
http://csis.org/files/publication/120510_Afghan_Military_Progress.pdf [PDF format, 27 pages].
Center for Strategic and International Studies. May 3, 2012.
The United States has now provided a wide range of details as to its new strategy and its FY2013 national security budgets. An updated study by the Burke Chair compares the information in the new strategy document with the details of the President’s request for both the total FY2013 federal budget and the FY2013 defense budget, and examines how the trends in the total budget and in national security spending affect U.S. capability to implement its national security strategy. [Note: contains copyrighted material].
http://csis.org/files/publication/120503_US_New_Strategy_FY13_Budget.pdf [PDF format, 124 pages].
Congressional Research Service. May 10, 2012.
This report provides context for policymakers on the youth employment situation. It includes data on labor force participation, employment, and unemployment in the post-World War II period, with a focus on trends since 2000. This discussion compares rates based on age, gender, race/ethnicity, and income, where applicable. The report also explores the factors that influence youth participation in the labor force and their prospects for employment.
http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R42519.pdf [PDF Format, 35 pages].
