PCLOB Nominee Backs Critical DOJ, FBI Reports

DOJ’s inspector general highlighted “significant” concerns about the department’s intelligence gathering efforts for the discredited Steele dossier, the nominee to lead the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board told the Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday. The dossier by Christopher Steele, a former British intelligence agent linked to the Hillary Clinton campaign, alleged Trump-Russia-linked interference in the 2016 presidential election. The IG’s reports were “very convincing” and detailed 17 omissions or errors in the IC’s Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act applications, said Sharon Bradford Franklin during her confirmation hearing.

Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., pressed Franklin to admit the dossier allegations were untrue. She deferred to the IG findings, which she described as “significant.” President Joe Biden nominated Beth Williams, a former DOJ assistant attorney general under President Donald Trump, to sit on the PCLOB with Franklin.

Williams said she hasn’t taken a stance on the veracity of the dossier allegations because she didn’t have access to read the report. She noted reports showing concerns with the way the dossier was procured and apparent falsehoods in it.

Kennedy criticized PCLOB for not taking any action on the dossier. Board members shouldn't “hide their heads in a bag,” he said. He criticized IC members for putting their full force and weight behind a dossier that “isn’t true.” PCLOB should have made the effort to verify what was in the dossier, he said, noting it’s the board’s job to protect Americans’ civil liberties and privacy, regardless of who they are. Williams agreed it’s the organization's job to make sure agencies are truthful and privacy is protected. Kennedy said PCLOB’s lack of action should “embarrass” the board.

Members didn't raise any concerns about the nominees' backgrounds. Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said he looks forward to “expeditious” confirmation of both candidates, saying their backgrounds are a testament to the bipartisan nomination process.

Franklin is the Center for Democracy & Technology’s Security & Surveillance Project co-director. She was executive director of PCLOB 2013-17 and served as New America’s director of surveillance and cybersecurity policy after. Williams is a former DOJ assistant AG for the Office of Legal Policy. She also was special counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee. Franklin noted her work in advocating for expanding individual rights but said it’s her goal to strike the right balance between national security and privacy. Williams backed scrupulous protection of privacy and civil liberties.