Dec
06
Time9:00AM5:30PM EST LocationF.A. Hayek Auditorium, DC
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2019 Cato Institute Surveillance Conference

Not since the 1970s have intelligence activities — and intelligence oversight — been as central to America’s domestic political discourse as they are today. From presidential impeachment to election security, from explosive allegations of political wiretapping to debates over the regulation of social media platforms, U.S. spy agencies — as well as the myriad overseers tasked with checking their power — seem to play central roles in the most contentious issues of the day. The common thread is the tension always inherent to intelligence in a democratic society: the need to make necessarily secretive spy agencies accountable to the political branches of government but independent of politics. Yet even as intelligence agencies face unprecedented public scrutiny — and seek to meet unprecedented demands for transparency — the scale and complexity of their work has left many wondering whether meaningful control is possible.

The 2019 Cato Institute Surveillance Conference will explore that question with a special focus on the people and institutions tasked with watching the watchers, including congressional committees, inspectors general, independent privacy boards, and courts.

Schedule:

9:00 – 9:15AM WELCOME AND INTRODUCTION

Julian Sanchez, Senior Fellow, Cato Institute

9:15 – 10:15AM PANEL – “Watching the Detectives: Improving Intelligence Oversight”

Genevieve Lester, De Serio Chair of Strategic Intelligence, U.S. Army War College
Daniel Schuman, Policy Director. Demand Progress
David M. Barrett, Professor of Political Science, Villanova University

10:15 – 10:30AM MORNING BREAK
10:30 – 11:30AM PANEL – “Overseeing Programmatic Surveillance: FISA §702 and §215”

Charlie Savage, Charlie Savage, Washington Correspondent, New York Times
Carrie Cordero, Robert M. Gates Senior Fellow, Center for a New American Security
Elizabeth Goitein, Director, Liberty and National Security Program, Brennan Center for Justice
Neema Singh Guliani, Legislative Counsel, American Civil Liberties Union
Ben Huebner, Chief, Office of Civil Liberties, Privacy, & Transparency, Office of the Director of National Intelligence

11:30 – 12:00PM MORNING FLASH TALKS

“How Often Do Prosecutors Get Location Surveillance Orders? The DOJ Has No Idea…”
Alan Butler, Senior Counsel, Electronic Privacy Information Center

“Stop Snitching: The New Landscape of Media Leak Prosecutions”
Gabe Rottman, Director, Technology and Press Freedom Project, Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press

12:00 – 1:00PM LUNCH
1:00 – 2:45PM AFTERNOON FLASH TALKS

“Global Implications of an ‘America First’ Surveillance Policy”
Greg Nojeim, Senior Counsel and Director, Freedom, Technology, and Security Project, Center for Democracy and Technology

“Cutting to the Core: Unmediated Government Access to Data as a Surveillance Hack”
Jason Pielemeier, Policy Director, Global Network Initiative

“Surveillance Sprawl: Tracking the Expansion of Countering Violent Extremism Programs”
Nabihah Maqbool, Legal Fellow, Muslim Advocates

“Spying on Dissent: The Enduring Problem of FBI First-Amendment Abuse”
Chip Gibbons, Policy and Legislative Counsel, Defending Rights and Dissent

2:45 – 3:00PM AFTERNOON BREAK
3:00 – 4:00PM PANEL – “A Conversation with the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board”

Jennifer Daskal, Professor of Law & Faculty Director of Tech, Law, & Security Program, Washington College of Law at American University
Adam Klein, Chair, Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board
Jane Nitze, Board Member, Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board
Aditya Bamzai, Board Member, Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board

4:00 – 4:15PM FLASH TALK
4:15 – 5:15PM PANEL – “Return of the Crypto Wars”

Gail Kent, Messaging and Interoperability Policy Lead, Facebook
Jim Baker, Director of National Security and Cybersecurity, R Street Institute
Matthew Blaze, Professor of Law and Chair of the Department of Computer Science, Georgetown University

5:15 – 5:30PM CLOSING REMARKS
5:30PM RECEPTION

RSVP here.

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