The Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) is about defending against relentless ideological enemies who are bent on destroying the American way of life. However, the methods employed by the members of the homeland security, intelligence, law enforcement, and military communities that are charged with protecting the United States must be carefully measured. American citizens’ individual civil liberties must be safeguarded from infringement against a backdrop of evolving intelligence requirements. This paper will examine several related questions. First, what laws, judicial rulings, executive orders, regulations, policies, and precedents govern U.S. intelligence gathering related to operations that could affect American citizens? Are governmental departments and agencies operating in compliance? Does our current legal framework permit the sort of intelligence collection, sharing, and dissemination needed? If not, how can the agencies charged with doing so continue collecting the domestic intelligence needed to meet homeland security requirements, without trampling on the very Constitution those of us in the military are sworn to defend? Thoughtful consideration of these issues is the key to a true “victory” in the GWOT, lest we sacrifice our way of life along the way.
