Looking at an article in Sunday’s Washington Post and remarks from National Security Adviser James Jones at the annual Munich conference on security policy, a new form is emerging for the National Security Council (NSC), one that should make it easier for science and technology advice to enter into relevant NSC discussions.  As part of a widespread reorganization of both the NSC and its Homeland Security equivalent, the membership of the NSC will become more flexible, including agencies and advisers besides the State and Defense Departments, depending on the issue.  Jones’ remarks from the Washington Post article:

“The whole concept of what constitutes the membership of the national security community — which, historically has been, let’s face it, the Defense Department, the NSC itself and a little bit of the State Department, to the exclusion perhaps of the Energy Department, Commerce Department and Treasury, all the law enforcement agencies, the Drug Enforcement Administration, all of those things — especially in the moment we’re currently in, has got to embrace a broader membership,” he said.

From General Jones’ remarks in Munich:

“But to move forward, we must understand the terms national security and international security are no longer limited to the ministries of defense and foreign ministries; in fact, it encompasses the economic aspects of our societies. It encompasses energy. It encompasses new threats, asymmetric threats involving proliferation, involving the illegal shipment of arms and narco-terrorism, and the like. Borders are no longer recognized and the simultaneity of the threats that face us are occurring at a more rapid pace.”

The formal plan is expected later this week, but these early signs are encouraging.  I am making a bit of a reach here, assuming that the President’s Science Adviser might be engaged by the NSC on various problems.  But if the National Security Adviser is open to consulting the Energy Department, the reach doesn’t seem that long.   While the Office of Science and Technology Policy has had international issues on its agenda from time to time, the National Security Council ought to be more open – explicitly and organizationally – to the role of science and technology in its mission.