Bush Slams Leak of Terror Finance Story

pgwenthold said:
(The problem in this case is that we don't have to sacrifice liberty for security, if the people who are responsible for our security would do their job properly.
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The problem is that when the people who are responsible for our security do their job, the newspapers find out about it and print how they did it it for all the world to know. I honestly think if the NYT got word of Osama bin Laden's exact location and knew that it was going to be bombed within the next six hours, the news would be on their web site before the planes could get off the ground.

The NYT is not to blame if some moron with security clearance violates that clearance. They are the ones who are putting us at risk, not the newspaper.
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So the NYT has absolutely no responsibility whatsoever, except to its stockholders?

During WW II, just before the D-Day invasion, Eisenhower was concerned that news and the location of the Normandy invasion would leak out. He was so worried he called together the news pool and briefed them on all the details of the planned invasion. He ended up by telling the reporters that they were now privy to military secrets, and if a word of what they knew got out before the invasion, he would have them all arrested, tried, and hanged for treaon.

Today, the Times would probably sue, claiming "prior restraint" or something.
 
pgwenthold said:
The problem in this case is that we don't have to sacrifice liberty for security, if the people who are responsible for our security would do their job properly.
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Whatever that might be. Wonder if we will soon try a implement a D-Notice (IIRC, that's the correct term) for public media and what they disseminate.

The NYT is not to blame if some moron with security clearance violates that clearance. They are the ones who are putting us at risk, not the newspaper.
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I'd say both do so, and the folks who spread the leaks all over front pages are much more culpable than whistle-blowers with unknown agendas.


For a somewhat larger view of the situations we face ...
http://www.townhall.com/opinion/columns/dianawest/2006/06/26/202386.html

How does one fight barbarians? Were it me, I'd be taking out square blocks from the air, there.

And I prefer not to discuss the nuts and bolts of our anti-terror domestic activities any more or less than I would like publicizing troop movement a day in advance in Iraq.
 
Luke T. said:
Bingo.
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Yeah, bingo.

"Mr. Keller, would you please instruct your reporters to give up the names of the people in the government who compromised national security so you could sell newspapers?"

"Hrmpphhh, protect sources, freedom of the press, promised anonimity, people's right to know..."

"Mr. Keller, what do you think about the Valerie Plame affair?"

"Novak should be forced to reveal the name of the person who blew her cover."

I love the smell of hypocrisy in the morning.
 
Treasury Secretary Snow responds to Keller. article
You have defended your decision to compromise this program by asserting that "terror financiers know" our methods for tracking their funds and have already moved to other methods to send money. The fact that your editors believe themselves to be qualified to assess how terrorists are moving money betrays a breathtaking arrogance and a deep misunderstanding of this program and how it works. While terrorists are relying more heavily than before on cumbersome methods to move money, such as cash couriers, we have continued to see them using the formal financial system, which has made this particular program incredibly valuable.
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BPSCG: '"Mr. Keller, would you please instruct your reporters to give up the names of the people in the government who compromised national security so you could sell newspapers?"

"Hrmpphhh, protect sources, freedom of the press, promised anonimity, people's right to know..."
"Mr. Keller, what do you think about the Valerie Plame affair?"
"Novak should be forced to reveal the name of the person who blew her cover."
I love the smell of hypocrisy in the morning.'

BPSCG, I have been following this Plame story pretty closely, and all the reporters I've heard comment on this did not think that Novak should be forced to reveal his sources. I also can find no instance in which the NY Times editor Bill Keller said that Novak should be forced to reveal his sources. Do you have a source for this Keller "quote"?
 
CFLarsen said:
Yes, that's understandable. Nobody likes their dirty laundry aired in public.
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Well, that depends. Since it's only the press violating national security in order to expose a classified program, it's all fine and good and wonderful and brave investigative journalism.

If, however, it's Mr. Rove "violating" national security to note that a member of the press is an ex-CIA agent, now, THAT is a REAL violation of national security.
 
Apollyon said:
The NYT could be held responsible for violating the Espionage Act, particularly since they were requested to not print the article.
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They could be charged, and it will immediately, and properly, get thrown out of court as unconstitutional. The only way the government could get them into real trouble was if they bribed someone to get the info.

We, the people of the United States, have reserved the unconditional right to speak and reveal any information we come across. We have granted the government no powers whatsoever over it.

Having said that, I do think they were wrong, and have abused this right by revealing that information. One doesn't wonder, though, if the feds aren't trying to track other money flows, like those that benefit their political opponents.
 
I used to work for S.W.I.F.T. on a contract over in the Netherlands at their Euro hub programming "Artificial Intelligence" aiding as a system operator automated backup. It's right down the street from the Heiniken brewery. Ahhh, the scent of freshly baked bread.

This consortium company guarantees accurate delivery -- they once almost had to pay $200 million once because of a goof up. This was the interest for failing to deliver a message until the next day.

This was during the first Gulf War. I remember them announcing that this center was a potential terrorist target, for obvious reasons, and that we were to tell the guards our license plate numbers so they could look for unusual vehicles. Lovely.
 
Skeptic said:
If, however, it's Mr. Rove "violating" national security to note that a member of the press is an ex-CIA agent, now, THAT is a REAL violation of national security.
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What dreamland do you live in? How do you get "member of the press is an ex-CIA agent"? Plame was an active CIA agent. Rush is not an accurate source of news, or information.


Daredelvis
 
Beerina said:
They could be charged, and it will immediately, and properly, get thrown out of court as unconstitutional. The only way the government could get them into real trouble was if they bribed someone to get the info.

We, the people of the United States, have reserved the unconditional right to speak and reveal any information we come across. We have granted the government no powers whatsoever over it.

Having said that, I do think they were wrong, and have abused this right by revealing that information. One doesn't wonder, though, if the feds aren't trying to track other money flows, like those that benefit their political opponents.
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I'm not so sure that we have the unconditional right to speak and reveal any information we come across. In fact, I'm pretty positive that we do not have such a right:

http://www.commentarymagazine.com/Production/files/schoenfeld0306advance.html
 
BPSCG said:
Yeah, bingo.

"Mr. Keller, would you please instruct your reporters to give up the names of the people in the government who compromised national security so you could sell newspapers?"

"Hrmpphhh, protect sources, freedom of the press, promised anonimity, people's right to know..."

"Mr. Keller, what do you think about the Valerie Plame affair?"

"Novak should be forced to reveal the name of the person who blew her cover."

I love the smell of hypocrisy in the morning.
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Sorry, can you remind me when any member of the press said that Novak should be forced to reveal his sources?
 
Apollyon said:
The NYT could be held responsible for violating the Espionage Act, particularly since they were requested to not print the article.
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Yeah. But, since they aren't being held responsible, obviously they did no wrong.

So why request that the article not be printed?
 
Skeptic said:
Well, that depends. Since it's only the press violating national security in order to expose a classified program, it's all fine and good and wonderful and brave investigative journalism.
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If national security is violated, surely the press will be punished?
 
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