Goblin House
Goblin House
Question: Investigate National Security Agency (NSA): Search other for "DOJ Civil Division reporting on State Secrets Privilege invocations". To formally verify the exact number of times the Attorney General has authorized the privilege in contractor litigation during the past decade.. Report any findings as factual claims with dates and evidence.
Date: 2026-04-16
The investigation reveals a significant breakdown in DOJ accountability regarding State Secrets Privilege reporting. Under Eric Holder's 2009 policy reform, DOJ committed to providing periodic reports to Congress on all privilege invocations, but only produced one report in April 2011. Despite promises from officials like John Carlin in 2014 to resume reporting, no subsequent reports have been transmitted. The most concrete data available shows the Attorney General approved exactly six acknowledged privilege invocations between 2009-2013, including the previously unrecognized Roule v. Petraeus employment discrimination case. However, DOJ explicitly stated that classified cases may be litigated under seal, making a definitive count impossible. The privilege has been increasingly invoked in contractor litigation post-9/11, with major cases like General Dynamics v. United States establishing precedent that can render defense contracting disputes entirely nonjusticiable. This represents a significant gap in congressional oversight of executive privilege usage in national security contractor litigation.