If you think Los Alamos is secure, think again!

[sfloriII]

And it doesn't look like it'll be secure any time soon.

The following is from The Federalist, a daily email newsletter I receive:


On the National Security front...

The nation's nuclear-laboratory complex was recently rocked by yet another major security lapse, when Los Alamos National Laboratory reported two computer disks with classified nuclear weapons data had been missing since 7 July. Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham has ordered work on weapons programs suspended nationwide pending a security review at Los Alamos.

It is possible that this latest violation is merely a clerical mistake, and that the missing disks remain in the lab's secure storage area. Regardless of the explanation, however, this latest security violation should be -- must be -- the last straw regarding security at the nuclear-weapons labs. There are no more important classified materials in the United States than those dealing with nuclear weapons. The demonstrated inability of Los Alamos and its University of California overseers to protect critical national secrets must be dealt with immediately, credibly, and harshly. 19 employees were suspended pending investigation, and at least 20 employees have been allowed to take early retirement, apparently to avoid having to take responsibility for their violations.

It was hoped, in January, 2001, that the incoming Bush administration would rectify the unqualified disaster that was National Laboratory security in the wake of the Clinton Administration's eight-year "stewardship." The laundry list of their debacles at Los Alamos is too long to document here, but Patriot readers will no doubt remember the Wen Ho Lee espionage case, the wholesale and criminal declassification of weapons data by Rose Gottemoeller (Assistant Energy Secretary for Non-proliferation and National Security), the termination of color-coded security badges since they were too "discriminatory," the mass visitation by Chinese and Russian scientists (over 900 Chinese visited in 1998 alone), and the demonizing or firing of Notra Trulock, Lt. Col. Edward McCallum, Peter Leitner, and other brave whistleblowers.

Now, three and a half years into the Bush administration, it is obvious that the Department of Energy is culturally incapable of imposing and maintaining serious security standards. The only acceptable fix to the dysfunctional state of security is that proposed by the Heritage Foundation's Ronald Utt five years ago: Turn over the weapons labs to the Department of Defense. Many in Congress and in the Department of Energy will fight such a step desperately, but it must be done. The information at our nuclear labs is of paramount importance. Only the Defense Department has the necessary culture to do the job right.

Security problems at Los Alamos take on special significance in regard to two current nuclear issues: the potential development of very-low-yield "mini" nuclear warheads intended to destroy hardened underground targets too tough for high-explosive bombs; and the looming need to resume testing of the U.S. nuclear arsenal. Los Alamos will be central to both efforts, and the ability to manage classified materials simply must be established before either project can go forward. All the more reason to get the labs under DoD control at the earliest possible moment.

New evidence suggests that the security breech may indeed be a clerical error only, and that the two disks in question may not even exist. (Still, we'd like to know where Sandy Berger was on the days in question.) After five weeks of searching by those responsible for safeguarding our nation's nuclear secrets, this offers precious little comfort. A new initiative for a second Bush administration comes to mind....

[Botnst]

The concern is real. The treatment of Truelock and other whistleblowers was deplorable. The problem is that folks who are scientists must naturally challenge established authority. It is impossible to have creativity in a regimented lab. At Los Alamos, security suffers from this.

But I don't like the idea of DoD being responsible for nukular research, weapons development, validation, deployment, and use. That is way too much control by one group, with one mind-set. Its got to be divided to protect the world from a military-industrial complex run-amuck.