WASHINGTON, Feb. 28 (UPI) -- A Maryland Democratic congressman and former prosecutor has been made chairman of the House subcommittee overseeing the super-secret National Security Agency.
Rep. C.A. "Dutch" Ruppersburger was named Tuesday in a statement from the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. He will chair the Subcommittee on Technical and Tactical Intelligence, which oversees the NSA, and several other large agencies which collect signals, satellite or other kinds of technical intelligence.
Ruppersburger told United Press International that U.S. satellite and other technical collection programs were "very expensive, but very important."
"We control the skies," he said, "We have the best scientists, mathematicians and engineers." He added the United States had to maintain its edge. "We need to maintain that superiority," he said, "or our national interests could be threatened.
One of his priorities will be improving oversight and management of a handful of huge -- and hugely over-budget -- satellite, data analysis and other technological programs at the NSA and other agencies, which have been criticized as poorly managed and wasteful.
"We've had some failures," he said. "We need to find out why." He said some of the problems related to program management issues and the way large contracts with the private sector were run.
"There is no single solution," he said, when asked about experimental acquisition vehicles like so-called spiral procurement. "I plan on a lot of communication and a teamwork approach," he added, pledging to bring in "members of the business and contractor community" for discussions about the issues.
