Smith-Mundt

The Smith-Mundt Act of 1948 is presented as a crucial piece of legislation enacted simultaneously with the formal establishment of a covert political warfare apparatus.

Its primary purpose was to serve as a firewall to prevent the propaganda and influence operations conducted by US government agencies (like the State Department and later USAID and the CIA) abroad from being directed at the domestic US population.

Congress, in 1948, recognised the potential dangers of authorising a permanent, covert department for "dirty tricks". This apparatus was designed to infiltrate and co-opt various foreign institutions including universities, unions, media outlets, politicians, and judges – essentially creating a "swarm army" or a "USA Truman Show" in foreign countries, where the local population would be largely unaware of the US government's role in shaping their reality.

The Smith-Mundt Act allowed for actions such as planting fake news in foreign countries. However, the firewall was intended to stop this information from "coming home" and deceiving US citizens. The media and media control were seen as key to winning the Cold War by piping in pro-US media influence into foreign countries, shifting warfare from kinetic acquisition to influencing hearts and minds to win elections and laws.

This protection, which purportedly lasted for 70 years, was lost about 2014. The effective repeal is attributed to the **Smith-Mundt Modernization Act, which occurred during the Obama administration. According to the sources, this "modernisation" "got rid of the whole purpose of it," removing the domestic firewall.

The consequence is a "Smith-Mundt problem for funding and operations," meaning the apparatus developed for foreign influence can now influence domestic affairs. This isn't just limited to Propaganda but also includes funding groups that interact with domestic prosecutors or media. The sources argue that this weaponisation of the foreign policy apparatus against domestic citizens is a "fundamental assault on the premise for even having them in the first place".

The removal of the Smith-Mundt protection against foreign propaganda distributed inwards left the US "completely Smith-Mundtless".

In discussing potential reforms, the sources advocate for creating new legislative firewalls, similar to the original Smith-Mundt Act, to prevent foreign influence operations from impacting the domestic sphere. These reforms could include criminal or civil penalties for violations, making agencies and sponsored NGOs accountable if they break the domestic firewall. The goal is to prevent the poison inspired overseas from coming into the US.