New survey of intelligence network created in wake of 9/11 attacks estimates some 854,000 people have high-level clearance

In a piece in the Guardian today

Since 9/11, US intelligence numbers have gone through the roof – and the budget is three times as high

Contained the following:

In the cloak and dagger world of intelligence, the assumption fed by countless spy novels and TV dramas is that top-secret security clearance is restricted to an elite few known only by codes such as M and C. Not so in today's America.

A new survey of the intelligence network created in the wake of the 9/11 attacks estimates that some 854,000 people have been given high-level clearance, making James Bond look decidedly everyday.

What an extraordinary number!