Functions of the CIA Essay -- Government Central Intelligence Agency

CIA Research Paper The Central Intelligence Agency is the President’s independent foreign intelligence arm, responsible to him through the Director of National Intelligence and the National Security Council, and accountable to the people of the United States by interaction with the intelligence oversight committees of Congress. The CIA has many duties within those boundaries and performs a variety of functions through many forms of intelligence. They employ people from all backgrounds of academic study, from linguists to economists, along with people from varied ethnic backgrounds to work as specialists. It is a large agency with many responsibilities, but most importantly they perform critical work for the President regarding international intelligence. The Central Intelligence Agency’s main responsibility is stated in its Vision statement: â€Å"We will provide knowledge and take action to ensure the national security of the United States and the preservation of American life and ideals† (www.cia.gov). The CIA’s job is to provide pertinent, timely, and un-biased foreign intelligence. They also act as an unseen force by conducting undercover action as ordered by the President in order to preempt threats or achieve objectives of the United States. The CIA is the only intelligence organization that is not subject to cabinet prerogative, making it reliable in it is unbiased in its reports, because it has no political agenda. There are six main types of intelligence by which the CIA collects information. Human intelligence (HUMINT) is information gathered by field operatives through overt and covert techniques (www.cia.gov). Communications intelligence (COMINT) is acquired from intercepted foreign communicati ons (www.cia.go... ...ence that is attained by the CIA is vital to the decisions made by top U.S. officials. Bibliography Central Intelligence Agency. The World Factbook. www.cia.gov 02/26/06 Central Intelligence Agency. Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Intelligence_Agency 2/26/06 CIA (United States Central Intelligence Agency). United States Central Intelligence Agency Forum. http://www.espionageinfo.com/Ch-Co/CIA-United-States-Central-Intelligence-Agency.html 3/18/06 Drug Enforcement Agency. United States Department of Justice. www.dea.gov 3/18/06 National Security Council. The White House. www.whitehouse.gov 3/18/06 United States Intelligence Community. www.intelligence.gov 3/18/06 U.S. Espionage and Intelligence. Jeffrey Richelson. George Washington University. http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/nsa/publications/ie/index.html 2/26/06