host: joining us for the last half-hour is steven aftergood with the project on government secrecy. we have just finished talking a little about the cia and their preservation of the intelligence and a secret from congress. you heard some of that conversation. anything surprise you? guest: just that it is part of a larger issue. hal information disclosure is regulated for political advantage. the government decides what it wants to disclose. it is often not based on principle, but on what serves their interests. that is a problematic approach. host: i should point out that the president has asked james jones, the national security adviser, to review the recommendations on the release of classified documents. what will happen in that 90-day period? guest: the classification is not based in law but an executive order. presidents typically issue their own version to define the classification system. president obama has said i want you to look at revising the bush administration's executive order to promote greater openness and transparency. over the next 90 days the national security c

dave mccurdy talks about general motors, and stephen after -- steven aftergood. "washington journal," live at 7:00 a.m. eastern on c-span. former vice president dick cheney was at the national press club to present the actual ford foundation journalism awards. he also answered questions from audience members. this lasts about 35 minutes. >> the first question, you were working to get information declassified from the obama administration. how is that going? [laughter] >> well, the debate is over a set of memos that were produced by intelligence agencies, the cia, that talked about what we achieved through the interrogations program of high- value detainees, and i would not ordinarily be leading the charge to declassify classified information. otherwise, they would not call me darth vader for nothing. [laughter] but once the administration released the legal memos that gave the opinions that were used to guide the interrogations program, they had given away the store, in a sense, the techniques that were used in the interrogations program, i thought was important

host: you can read the report of steven aftergood on our website at c-span.org. that will about good. we will be back at 7:00 a.m. eastern tomorrow. have a great day. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2009] . . >> tonight, dennis blair will discuss his recent trip to pakistan, afghanistan, and singapore. that begins at about 8:30 p.m., also on c-span 2. the former cia director michael hayden gave a speech at the institute of world politics. it is a graduate school focusing on international affairs. he talks about the importance of a foreign policy vocation. >> it was less difficult putting on my battle uniform than this. you are very kind. everything you said about janine was true. i know you are an honest man. i know you are in washington. clearly, your remarks about me were not rendered under oath. graduates, family, and friends of graduates, it is an honor for me to be here among you. not just to be here to recognize your achievements, but it is an honor that you have asked me to be inclu

host: steven aftergood with the federation for american scientists in a report about reducing government secrecy. you write that the government has in addition to stamping things classified. why? guest: it is a natural bureaucratic phenomenon. large organizations and even small ones like to control how they are perceived from the outside. they do not publish their internal debates and disputes. they try to shape the way they're perceived on the outside in secrecy enables them to do that. not all of it is pernicious. most secrets are banal and of no great significance, but sometimes the authority to classify is used in a pernicious way to avoid controversy. it is that that needs to be confronted and reversed. host: you published or finding a secrecy in the yale and policy review. it is linked on our website. who do hope reads this and takes it too hard? guest: -- and takes it to heart. -- guest: anyone who can benefit from the background. my ideas are not above criticism and readers may have better ideas. i hope that anyone interested will get engaged and contribute. host: there's an iron