Presidential Directive

Presidential Directives , better known as Presidential Decision Directives (or PDDs), are a form of an executive order issued by the President of the United States with the advice and analysis of the National Security Council. The directives articulate the executive's national security policy and carry the "full force and effect of law".

Since many of the Presidential Directives pertain to the national security of the United States, many remain classified.

Presidents have issued such directives under various names.

*the document has been declassified and released in part

**the document has not been reviewed for release or release has been denied in full

A 1986 National Security Decision Directive gave the State Department authority and responsibility to coordinate responses to international terrorism across government agencies including the CIA, DoD, and FBI. This was intended to reduce interagency conflicts which were observed in the response to the hijacking of the Achille Lauro cruise ship. The State Department's Bureau of Counterterrorism continues this coordinating function.

After September 11, 2001, George W. Bush issued Homeland Security Presidential Directives (HSPDs), with the consent of the Homeland Security Council.

Regarding the secrecy of presidential directives, Steven Aftergood of the Federation of American Scientists' Project on Government Secrecy stated in February 2008 that:

Of the 54 National Security Presidential Directives issued by the (George W.) Bush Administration to date, the titles of only about half have been publicly identified. There is descriptive material or actual text in the public domain for only about a third. In other words, there are dozens of undisclosed Presidential directives that define U.S. national security policy and task government agencies, but whose substance is unknown either to the public or, as a rule, to Congress.

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