Lawmakers blast White House over leaks

[reg_indy]

Everyone with the possible exception of Laura Bush, was blamed for Plame being "outed." Why should Obama be protected from the same accusations?

The question is more the hypocrisy of those who 'poo pooed' the Plame stuff, but claim this incident to be the end of the world....

It will be investigated by the apropriate agencies.

[Sprightly]

The question is more the hypocrisy of those who 'poo pooed' the Plame stuff, but claim this incident to be the end of the world....

It will be investigated by the apropriate agencies.

Sure.

[gonzoliberal]

The big dif between the Plame case and the current one is that the Plame outing was carried out by the vice preznit and his cronies with assumed knowledge of the Shrub.
This time, the White House entire is denying knowledge of the leak, which came from the bowels of the State Dept.

No difference to the weak minded.
Great difference to the discerning.

Oh, and this is not to say anyone is "poo poo-ing" the leak.

[Sprightly]

The big dif between the Plame case and the current one is that the Plame outing was carried out by the vice preznit and his cronies with assumed knowledge of the Shrub.
This time, the White House entire is denying knowledge of the leak, which came from the bowels of the State Dept.

No difference to the weak minded.
Great difference to the discerning.

Oh, and this is not to say anyone is "poo poo-ing" the leak.

Stunning.

[CajunRaven]

guess that hyper comment hit close to. home as you've spent time defending yourself with addressing you comment that outing an active CIA somehow pales when compared to this current leak and I called BS.

Your response to me is you aren't going to address your original comment except to say it isn't small potatoes-- do tell, what makes this leak far more damaging that putting someone's life in danger...that's the part you still haven't expounded upon.....

The outing of Valerie Plame was wrong. However, she was working at Langley, she was not a covert agent in the field.

Compare that to the outing of Dr Shakil Afridi in Pakistan who is now serving 30 years in prison.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...#ixzz1xaGhnzSb

We did nothing at all, didn’t raise a finger. … From what my sources tell me, we did nothing to try and help this guy. On Wednesday, Rep. Peter King, the New York congressman who leads the House Homeland Security Committee, pointed to the White House for outing Dr. Afridi to Pakistani authorities.

They put him out there, Mr. King said in light of the Doctor’s prison sentence for treason by the Pakistani government. This has been handled very poorly right from the time of the raid, Mr. King told Fox News. They disclosed his identity.

Or the latest underwear bomber story.

The-al-qaeda-underwear-bomber-and-the-cia-leaks-loose-lips-sink-spies

According to the Associated Press (AP), the CIA foiled an audacious plot by Al Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) to attack an aircraft using an upgraded version of the underwear bomb that failed three years ago. The AP had, apparently, shown great responsibility in delaying publication for days at the request of the White House.

Then, the story grew both muddier and more remarkable still. The would-be bomber was in fact a mole. He was a British national of Saudi Arabian origin, recruited by MI5 in Europe and later run, with Saudi Arabia, by MI6. This is a testament to the unimaginable courage of the agent in question, and the ingenuity of British intelligence.

But the emergence of this story, with a blow-by-blow account of operational detail, is the result of reckless, impetuous leaking that could cost lives and compromise operations in the future.

Or the leaks regarding Stuxnet. Or the drone strikes.

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2012/06/12

Within days of SEAL Team Six's killing of Osama on that midnight mission in Pakistan, Defense Secretary Bob Gates, reading all about the raid in the press, went to the White House to tell President Obama's national security adviser pungently to "shut the (bleep) up."

Leaked secrets of that raid may have led to the imprisonment for 33 years of a Pakistani doctor who helped us locate bin Laden.

Yet, according to Judicial Watch, the White House has been providing Hollywood with details of the raid for a movie that will, we may be sure, heroize our commander in chief. More troubling are two recent stories in The New York Times.

One, by Jo Becker and Scott Shane, describes how, at meetings in the Situation Room, Obama examines "baseball cards" of al-Qaida targets in Pakistan and Yemen and decides on the "kill list" for drone strikes.
Most explosive was the June 1 story by David Sanger, who wrote of the origins and operation of a secret U.S-Israeli cyberwar strike on Iran's uranium enrichment plant at Natanz. The Stuxnet virus we introduced into Natanz put 1,000 centrifuges out of action.

These security leaks raise moral, strategic and legal issues.

So yeah, the Plame story pales in comparison to what is going on now regarding putting the country and people in danger.

As far as you hitting close to home, you'd missed the plate if you had a basketball and were standing in the batter's box.

[soulflower]

I don't know that there is direct evidence yet. But, given what the article says:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/01/wo...pagewanted=all



One has to ask. If Mr. Sanger is referring to people particpating in the Situation Room meetings, where did that come from? It would have to be someone in the room.

Until we have some concrete proof of administration officials intentionally leaking stuff, this issue just looks like more petty political BS...

[CajunRaven]

The big dif between the Plame case and the current one is that the Plame outing was carried out by the vice preznit and his cronies with assumed knowledge of the Shrub.
This time, the White House entire is denying knowledge of the leak, which came from the bowels of the State Dept.

No difference to the weak minded.
Great difference to the discerning.

Oh, and this is not to say anyone is "poo poo-ing" the leak.

Just because the White House is denying it doesn't make it so, discerning mind. Where exactly did the quotes from the situation room come from.

Even Sanger has said he talked to White House people.

[CajunRaven]

Until we have some concrete proof of administration officials intentionally leaking stuff, this issue just looks like more petty political BS...

Before anyone is convicted of doing anything, you're right, proof needs to be established.

This is hardly petty stuff, but again, don't ask me, ask Diane Feinstein.

She said, "Her heart dropped when she read the Stuxnet story".

[Mom49of4]

Until we have some concrete proof of administration officials intentionally leaking stuff, this issue just looks like more petty political BS...

Have you felt that way in the past where there were leaks?

[soulflower]

Have you felt that way in the past where there were leaks?

I can't think of any examples besides Valerie Plame and there was evidence that the Bush administration intentionally outed her...

[soulflower]

Before anyone is convicted of doing anything, you're right, proof needs to be established.

This is hardly petty stuff, but again, don't ask me, ask Diane Feinstein.

She said, "Her heart dropped when she read the Stuxnet story".

I'm just not convinced that this is a big deal. Stuff gets leaked to the press all the time. Rarely eoes the stuff that gets leaked ever threaten national security. As I said earlier, nearly 1 million people have top secret security clearances. It's inevitable that there will be leaks.

[soulflower]

That was a vindictive, hateful, evil, and illegal act. It made me sick to my stomach at the time an it does so now.

This is not really similar but the leaking of classified info to friendly media for PR and political reasons is a serious charge.

I agree that its a serious charge. Which is why they should have some evidence before they accuse people but you can't expect that much common sense from politicians...

[grggngll]

I can't think of any examples besides Valerie Plame and there was evidence that the Bush administration intentionally outed her...

There was no outing. She was a public figure who everyone knew worked for the CIA. She was a desk jockey.

[grggngll]

When I saw 0 say that he was offended that people thought that his WH would do something like that, I had to puke.

Except for the finger wagging, that was a Bubba moment there.

[gonzoliberal]

There was no outing. She was a public figure who everyone knew worked for the CIA. She was a desk jockey.

Such is the "alternate reality" that tools like you dishonestly peddle to the unwitting.

Creepy, really...

[grggngll]

Such is the "alternate reality" that tools like you dishonestly peddle to the unwitting.

Creepy, really...

If you would occasionally step outside of your self induced ignorance bubble, you would know what everyone else knows.

Search around google a little bit and educate yourself. It is not too late.

[EmDot]

Well, In many cases I think they donate to help the chances for an appointment.

McCain? Yeah, that might give me pause as well. I would rather see these type of positions filled with less political people.

But I never said that it should preclude his appointment to him job. Just his position in this particular investigation.

Also, maybe they were picked as much for their geograghic location (close proximity to the action ).

[EmDot]

Everyone with the possible exception of Laura Bush, was blamed for Plame being "outed." Why should Obama be protected from the same accusations?

Did I say that he should be protected? I was just wondering if Mom49of4 felt the same way about President Bush during the Plame incident. Looking back, I see I quoted the wrong post for my question. I should have quoted this one.

Sorry this reflects badly on Obama.

[Mom49of4]

I don't remember how I felt when it was Valerie Plame.

[EmDot]

I don't remember how I felt when it was Valerie Plame.

I know the feeling.