White House Faces Barrage of Leak Queries
By PETE YOST, Associated Press Writer
The White House faced a barrage of questions Friday over the timing of President Bush's decision to declassify intelligence that was then leaked to the press by Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff...
...Administration critics said Bush's actions were a misuse of the declassification process.
Bush's "selective declassification of highly sensitive intelligence for political purposes is wrong," said House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
Pelosi said a presidential executive order requires a uniform system for classifying, declassifying and safeguarding national security information and asked, "Why didn't President Bush follow this protocol before authorizing the selective leak of highly sensitive intelligence?"
Rep. Rush Holt, D-N.J., called for a House Intelligence Committee investigation and for the president to explain his actions in person to Congress.
Last year, a commission appointed by Bush to look into the failure to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq cautioned against leaks for political purposes.
"Policymakers who leak intelligence to the press in order to gain political advantage ... may do so without fully appreciating the potential harm that can result to sources and methods," the commission said.
It said the intelligence community should consider implementing "a widespread, modern-day equivalent of the `Loose Lips Sink Ships' campaign to educate individuals about their legal obligations and possible penalties to safeguard intelligence information."... http://tinyurl.com/fyywr
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By PETE YOST, Associated Press Writer
The White House faced a barrage of questions Friday over the timing of President Bush's decision to declassify intelligence that was then leaked to the press by Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff...
...Administration critics said Bush's actions were a misuse of the declassification process.
Bush's "selective declassification of highly sensitive intelligence for political purposes is wrong," said House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
Pelosi said a presidential executive order requires a uniform system for classifying, declassifying and safeguarding national security information and asked, "Why didn't President Bush follow this protocol before authorizing the selective leak of highly sensitive intelligence?"
Rep. Rush Holt, D-N.J., called for a House Intelligence Committee investigation and for the president to explain his actions in person to Congress.
Last year, a commission appointed by Bush to look into the failure to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq cautioned against leaks for political purposes.
"Policymakers who leak intelligence to the press in order to gain political advantage ... may do so without fully appreciating the potential harm that can result to sources and methods," the commission said.
It said the intelligence community should consider implementing "a widespread, modern-day equivalent of the `Loose Lips Sink Ships' campaign to educate individuals about their legal obligations and possible penalties to safeguard intelligence information."... http://tinyurl.com/fyywr
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posted by Dan at 5:56 AM
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