Will Hurd: Why I Voted to Release the Nunes Memo

In 1885, Woodrow Wilson wrote in his treatise "Congressional Government: A Study in American Politics" that "the informing function of Congress should be preferred even to its legislative function."I voted to release the Nunes memo because, like Wilson, I believe that the duty to inform the American public is one of my biggest responsibilities as an elected representative in our democratic republic. This is in accordance with the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946, which directed House and Senate committees to "exercise continuous watchfulness" over executive-branch programs. Furthermore, according to rules of the House, the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, on which I serve, may disclose publicly any information in its possession after a determination by the committee that the public interest would be served by such disclosure.I spent close to a decade as an undercover officer in the CIA and have spent most of my adult life collecting intelligence and protecting sources and methods. It is my job to know the difference between information and intelligence. As a result, I've been asked by some how I could vote to make classified information public. My response is simple: Not all classified information has national security implications. If it does, it should be withheld. But as David Garrow, a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian, once said, "Just because you see it in a top-secret document, just because someone had said it to the FBI, doesn't mean it's all accurate."  Continue reading...