Comments on: Tension Over Press Leaks

By: legion

legion — Fri, 28 Apr 2006 17:40:04 +0000

Exactly my point, Roger. Telling someone you're doing something illegal, but they can't report it, and them blaming them for tacitly approving your crimes. It's a one-of-a-kind taste combo of Orwell and Catch-22, brought to you by the Bush administration!

By: Roger

Roger — Fri, 28 Apr 2006 06:28:11 +0000

Even the few reps and sens on the intelligence committees felt they could not speak to anyone re Bush's illegal wiretapping activities without potentially revealing "classified" information, however illgal the program may have been. They had no way to investigate it. That was the sinister beauty of the way the neocon leadership "informed" Congress of the program.

By: McGehee

McGehee — Fri, 28 Apr 2006 00:37:24 +0000

What if itâ��s classified to the point that you cannot legally report the violation?

"Cannot legally report" it to whom? The CIA has its own office for reporting illegal activity. It's the very office where Mary McCarthy used to work. If anyone ought to have known her permissible options, it's McCarthy.

By: legion

legion — Thu, 27 Apr 2006 21:38:49 +0000

Well, One of my jobs in the USAF is dealing with security. Here's a direct quote from a training briefing I just got, that I get to relate to my colleagues tomorrow:

Under no circumstances shall information be classified in order to:
- conceal violations of law, inefficiency, or administrative error;
- prevent embarrassment to a person, organization, or agency;
- restrain competition; or
- prevent or delay the release of information that does not require protection in the interest of the national security.

Ref: Executive Order 12958, as amended, Section 1.7 (a)

So here's a discussion topic: What exactly should one do when one is presented with a situation in violation of a Presidential Executive Order? What if it's classified to the point that you cannot legally report the violation? What if the President himself is involved in the violation?

By: Dave Schuler

Dave Schuler — Thu, 27 Apr 2006 20:58:12 +0000

Your last paragraph is exactly where I come down on this issue, James. It concerns me that every federal employee with a grievance abandons legitimate process and is hailed by somebody as a courageous whistle blower.

However, I also think that while the natural predisposition of every executive is to classify as much as possible a free society requires that as little as practical be concealed from public scrutiny. The default condition should be unclassified rather than the other way around.

By: CARRY ON AMERICA » Blog Archive » Broder Reports on Leaks

CARRY ON AMERICA » Blog Archive » Broder Reports on Leaks — Thu, 27 Apr 2006 20:57:21 +0000

[...] Also blogging: Outside the Beltway [link] [...]

By: mannning

mannning — Thu, 27 Apr 2006 20:28:34 +0000

I heartily disagree with the conclusion that reporters shoud get a pass on being held accountable for passing on secret information to the public. If a reporter is aware of the sensitivity of the information some traitorous jerk is passing to him, he still has a responsibility to the nation to protect vital secrets, IMO. Just because one is a reporter does not mean that any and all information he receives should be published openly. This holds for the editors and owners of the media also. Whoever said that reporters have an absolute free pass? Rediculous!

By: » OTB News

» OTB News — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 18:00:00 +0000

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