Card Memorandum

Overview
The Card Memorandum was a memorandum issued on March 19, 2002, by Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff Andrew Card to executive branch departments and agencies. The “Card memo” cautioned that information possessed by the federal government which could be reasonably expected to assist in weapons of mass destruction development or use should not be inappropriately disclosed. Additionally, the guidance contained within the Card memo reinforced the need to protect sensitive, but unclassified information related to homeland security.