To guard against spying and subversion in defense plants, the U.S. launched a security clearance program in 1941 that, with modifications, now covers some 3,000,000 workers. Last week the Supreme Court jolted the program to its underpinnings by challenging the right of the Defense Department's Industrial Personnel Security Board to act on the basis of confidential information. In a strong 8-1 decision, the court ducked the constitutional issue but held that neither Congress nor the President had ever authorized a program that denied a suspect the opportunity to confront and cross-examine his accusers.
Before the court was the case of...
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