HARMAN CONFIRMS IN CALL WITH DHS SECRETARY NAPOLITANO THAT NAO WILL BE SHUT DOWN

Lawmaker says NAO was, “an ill-conceived vestige of the ‘dark side’ counterterrorism policies of the Bush years”

Washington, D.C. -- Congresswoman Jane Harman (D-CA), Chair of the Homeland Security Intelligence Subcommittee, issued the following statement after speaking today with DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano about her decision to shutter the National Applications Office – which Napolitano confirmed.

“As an ill-conceived vestige of the “dark side” counterterrorism policies of the Bush years, it was past time for the NAO to go.  I don’t believe the legal and constitutional questions it raised could ever be adequately addressed, and hearing from Secretary Napolitano that it will be closed is music to my ears,” said Harman.

Harman recently introduced bills to close (HR 2704) and cut-off appropriations (HR 2703) for the NAO – legislation praised by the ACLU.  Since 2007, when the Wall Street Journal first reported on the NAO, Harman has pushed to shut down the office.

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