Director of National Intelligence James R. Clapper, above, gave the UGA Charter Lecture on April 14, 2014.

I thought I should start by explaining to you why I’m here speaking to you, and why I wanted to be here to speak to you. It has to do with my own personal history, my own “journey,” I guess you might call it.

Public knowledge about the activities of government is essential to a free and democratic society, and so on his first full day in office President Obama, who has noted our “profound national commitment to ensuring an open government,” called upon the entire government to comply with both the letter and the spirit of the Freedom of Information Act.  Today I would like to talk to you about the challenges of reconciling that commitment with the secrecy necessary to conduct effective intelligence operations in defense of our national interests.

When did U.S. intelligence learn about Russian plans to take over Crimea? That question was at the heart of a firestorm on Capitol Hill set off by Arizona Sen. John McCain's confrontation with Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel. During a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing Wednesday, McCain, a Republican, said it was a "massive failure" that the U.S. intelligence agencies did not predict Russia's activities. But Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, in an exclusive interview with WTOP, disputed that characterization.

Remarks as prepared for delivery by James R. Clapper Director of National Intelligence Defense Strategies Institute (DSI) Automated ISR Symposium.