Janine Wedel - Unaccountable - How Elite Power Brokers Corrupt Our Finances, Freedom, and Security

29. Ibid., pp. 324-325.

30. Glenn Greenwald, op. cit.

31. For more on McConnell becoming “the leading spokesman for demanding full immunity for lawbreaking telecoms,” see also Glenn Greenwald, “Mike McConnell’s clear explanation of FISA.” Salon, August 23, 2007 (http://www.salon.com/2007/08/23/mcconnell_2/).

32. McConnell’s bio on Booz Allen’s website (http://www.boozallen.com/about/leadership/executive-leadership/McConnell).

33. Ken Dilanian, Tribune Washington Bureau, “Intelligence nominee’s contractor ties draw scrutiny.” Los Angeles Times , July 25, 2010 (http://articles.latimes.com/2010/jul/25/nation/la-na-clapper-contractors-20100725). (Dilanian’s byline says “Tribune Washington Bureau.” Dilanian is national security correspondent in the Times Washington Bureau, “which also serves the Chicago Tribune, Baltimore Sun, other newspapers” (http://www.linkedin.com/pub/ken-dilanian/6/632/82b).

34. Ibid.

35. Ibid.

36. Tim Shorrock, “Put the Spies Back Under One Roof.” New York Times, June 17, 2013 (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/18/opinion/put-the-spies-back-under-one-roof.html?_r=0).

See also “Mike McConnell, Booz Allen and the Privatization of Intelligence.” Democracy Now (http://www.democracynow.org/2007/1/12/mike_mcconnell_booz_allen).

37. Ken Dilanian, “Clapper says he would aim to expand clout of intelligence chief.” Los Angeles Times , July 21, 2010 (http://articles.latimes.com/2010/jul/21/nation/la-na-clapper-confirmation-20100721).

38. Ken Dilanian, “Intelligence nominee’s contractor ties draw scrutiny.” Los Angeles Times , July 25, 2010 (http://articles.latimes.com/2010/jul/25/nation/la-na-clapper-contractors-20100725).

39. See also this Washington Post investigation into the influence of contractors and the unmanageable growth of the intelligence community since 9/11: Washington Post Investigation, “Top Secret America” (http://projects.washingtonpost.com/top-secret-america/).

40. Robert O’Harrow, Jr., “Costs Skyrocket as DHS Runs Up No-Bid Contracts.” Washington Post, June 28, 2008 (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/27/AR2007062702988.html).

41. James Bamford, “NSA Snooping Was Only the Beginning. Meet the Spy Chief Leading Us into Cyberwar.” Wired, June 12, 2013 (http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2013/06/general-keith-alexander-cyberwar/all/).

42. For more on Clapper and the Snowden leaks, see, for example: Eli Lake, “Spy Chief James Clapper: We Can’t Stop Another Snowden.” The Daily Beast, February 23, 2014 (http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/02/23/spy-chief-we-can-t-stop-another-snowden.html).

43. Glenn Kessler, “James Clapper’s ‘least untruthful’ statement to the Senate.” Washington Post, June 12, 2013 (http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/post/james-clappers-least-untruthful-statement-to-the-senate/2013/06/11/e50677a8-d2d8-11e2-a73e-826d299ff459_blog.html).

44. Congressmen Darrell Issa, Ted Poe, Paul Broun, Doug Collins, Walter Jones, and Alan Grayson, “Letter to the President of the United States,” January 27, 2014 (http://issa.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/FINAL-NSA-Reforms-Letter-01-23-2014-2.pdf).

45. By the quotation marks, I don’t mean to imply that they’re not officially retired: in fact, McConnell spent 29 years on active service in the military, Clapper 32, and 20 years of active service is all that’s required for official retirement. Rather, I mean to indicate that they’re both still working full-time and therefore not “retired” in the conventional, civilian meaning of the word.

46. Bryan Bender, “From the Pentagon to the Private Sector.” Boston Globe , December 26, 2010 (http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2010/12/26/defense_firms_lure_retired_generals/)

47. E-mail from Julia Pfaff to author, June 13, 2014.

48. Ibid.

49. Bryan Bender, “From the Pentagon to the Private Sector.” Boston Globe , December 26, 2010 (http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2010/12/26/defense_firms_lure_retired_generals/).

The Globe generously provided my Mapping Shadow Influence project with its database on the retired generals and admirals; the project has doubled the size of the database. The Mapping Shadow Influence Project website is at: http://shadowelite.net/.

See also Janine R. Wedel and Linda Keenan, “Shadow Elite: Eisenhower’s Dark Vision Realized—The Military-Industrial Complex At 50.” Huffington Post, January 13, 2011 (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/janine-r-wedel/emshadow-eliteem-eisenhow_b_808410.html).

50. Luke Johnson, “Report: 70 Percent of Retired Generals Took Jobs With Defense Contractors or Consultants,” Huffington Post, November 19, 2012 (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/19/defense-contractors-generals_n_2160771.html); David Barstow, “One Man’s Military-Industrial-Media Complex.” New York Times, November 30, 2008 (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/30/washington/30general.html?pagewanted=print).

51. Bryan Bender, op. cit.; David Barstow, “One Man’s Military-Industrial-Media Complex.” New York Times, November 30, 2008 (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/30/washington/30general.html?pagewanted=all).

52. David Barstow, “Behind TV Analysts, Pentagon’s Hidden Hand.” New York Times, April 20, 2008 (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/20/us/20generals.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1&).

53. David Barstow, “One Man’s Military-Industrial-Media Complex.” New York Times, November 30, 2008 (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/30/washington/30general.html).

54. Bryan Bender, “From the Pentagon to the Private Sector,” op. cit.

55. Ibid.

56. The theoretical maximum length of service is thirty years, which, assuming a start in the person’s early twenties, would mean retirement for officers (who have almost universally been to college) in their early fifties at the oldest. Although many senior officers are able to get permission to serve longer, retirement ages for military personnel are typically much younger than for civilians.

57. Bryan Bender, “From the Pentagon to the Private Sector,” op. cit.

58. Joan Vennochi, “The Press had a Crush on David Petraeus, Too,” Boston Globe, November 18, 2012, http://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2012/11/18/david-petraeus-seduction-media-pays-off/uMaGeGBIgV7LxjhsOS5H7M/story.html.

59. Bryan Bender, “From the Pentagon to the Private Sector,” op. cit.

60. Ibid.

61. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), “Strategic Maneuvers: The Revolving Door from the Pentagon to the Private Sector.” CREW, November 16, 2012 (http://www.citizensforethics.org/page/-/PDFs/Reports/CREW_Strategic_Maneuvers_Pentagon_Generals_Revolving_Door_11_15_12.pdf?nocdn=1); see also: R. Jeffrey Smith, “Generals no longer retire to Vermont—they lobby for contractors in Washington.” Center for Public Integrity, November 21, 2012 (http://www.publicintegrity.org/2012/11/21/11839/generals-no-longer-retire-vermont-they-lobby-contractors-washington).

62. Tom Vanden Brook, Ken Dilanian, and Ray Locker, “Retired military officers cash in as well-paid consultants.” USA Today, November 18, 2009 (http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/military/2009-11-17-military-mentors_N.htm).

63. Ibid.; Tom Vanden Brook, “Pentagon reworks disclosure rule for ‘senior mentors.’” USA Today, July 19, 2010 (http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/military/2010-07-19-1Amentors19_ST_N.htm).

64. Tom Vanden Brook, “Pentagon reworks disclosure rule for ‘senior mentors,’” op. cit.; and Tom Vanden Brook and Ken Dilanian, “Gates orders overhaul of Pentagon mentor program.” USA Today, April 2, 2010 (http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/military/2010-04-01-mentors_N.htm)