WASHINGTON - The disappearance of nuclear secrets from a vault at the Los Alamos weapons lab has prompted a criminal investigation and unleashed another torrent of criticism about security at the Energy Department, leaving the Clinton administration scrambling to contain the political fallout.
The FBI, which was brought into the case when the Energy Department learned on June 1 of the disappearance of the nuclear secrets from the New Mexico facility, was conducting a criminal probe. The investigation was expected to focus on some two-dozen individuals who had free access to the highly secured vault where two computer hard drives that contained the nuclear files were kept.
Polygraph tests were expected to begin to be administered to some of the Los Alamos scientists within days, Energy Department officials said.
Senate Republican leaders, meanwhile, said they planned to act today on the nomination of John A. Gordon, the deputy CIA director, to head a new semi-independent nuclear weapons agency. Gordon's nomination, held up for months over a disagreement on how much power the agency should have within the Energy Department, is now expected to get swift approval.
But the new disclosure that two computer hard drives were missing at Los Alamos was likely to give Republicans plenty of ammunition to criticize the Clinton administration's national security record. And while Energy Secretary Bill Richardson emerged largely unscathed last from the Wen Ho Lee case, which also involved missing nuclear secrets, this time Richardson is expected to be a prime target.
''This incident occurred on his watch. He'll have to be made accountable,'' said Sen. John Warner, R-Va., chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
A summer of investigations into another Los Alamos security flap is not what Richardson, the most prominent Hispanic in the administration, had expected as he hopes to remain in contention as a potential vice presidential running mate to Al Gore.
Richardson moved swiftly to try to regain the offensive in what is an embarrassing disclosure of security bungling even if the two computer hard drives - which contain sophisticated data used to dismantle an array of U.S. and even Russian nuclear devices - are eventually recovered.
In these developments Tuesday:
- Richardson announced that two highly respected elder statesmen - former Senate Majority Leader Howard Baker, R-Tenn., and former Rep. Lee Hamilton, D-Ind. - would investigate the disappearance of the hard drives and make recommendations on security improvements to President Clinton.
- Retired Air Force Gen. Eugene Habiger, the Energy Department's top security official, said the FBI was conducting a criminal investigation of the matter. Twenty-six people had unescorted access to the vault, officials said.
- Six lab managers, including the chief of nuclear weapons programs, were placed on leave with pay because of the incident. A lab spokesman, John Gustafson, said the action was taken ''to ensure the independence and complete appearance of independence'' of an investigation by the University of California, which manages the lab.
Republicans lost no time in attacking the administration on the latest security bungle. And both House and Senate intelligence committees and armed services committees announced hearings for today and Thursday on the missing computer drives.
''The Energy Department has not heeded warnings about the dire need for security reforms,'' said Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., calling the latest incident ''an unacceptable security breach.'' He maintained there is some evidence the devices may have been stolen, but provided no details.
Investigators remained at a loss about what happened to the hard drives, which are the size of a deck of cards. Habiger said the employees who had access to the vault where the drives were stored were ''dedicated, loyal Americans.'' He expressed doubt that the devices were stolen and said it was more likely they were misplaced or accidentally destroyed.
The devices were found missing on May 7 as scientists sought to secure them from a massive wildfire threatening the lab complex. A lab investigation did not begin until May 24, and Energy Department officials did not learn of the disappearance until June 1, according to Habiger.
The two drives, which can be used in laptop computers, contained technical nuclear weapons data used by the Nuclear Emergency Search Team to dismantle nuclear devices in case of an accident or terrorist act.
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On the Net:
Senate Armed Services Committee http://www.senate.gov/armed-services/
Los Alamos National Laboratory http://www.lanl.gov/external/
