White House to declassify NIE after leak? Update: Bush says key judgments will be declassified
posted at 12:13 pm on September 26, 2006 by Allahpundit
Share on Facebook | printer-friendly
Maybe, and with good reason if so. Go read Spook 86, who’s had select quotes from the NIE provided to him by his contacts in the intel community. Odd that “Threats to the U.S. are intrinsically linked to U.S. success or failure in Iraq” didn’t make it into the New York Times’s article. Or into Howard Dean’s statement, which expresses an admirable ardor in wanting to fight Fox News reporters but not so much jihadis in the Sunni triangle.
The boss thinks they should go ahead and declassify. What happens the next time there’s a leak, though, and they don’t follow suit? Won’t that be read as a sign that the classified info is, in its totality, just as dire as the leak might indicate?
Update: Bush told the press corps at his appearance with Karzai that Negroponte will declassify the key judgments of the NIE. Greg Tinti has video.
Update: Keep your eye on the DNI website. The Corner says the declassified portions of the memo will be posted there later today.
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Blowback
Note from Hot Air management: This section is for comments from Hot Air's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that Hot Air management agrees with or otherwise endorses any particular comment just because we let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with our terms of use may lose their posting privilege.
Trackbacks/Pings
Trackback URL
Comments
Comment pages:
Bush just said they would declassify the document. Which is a good thing. However, I wish he had also said they are going to aggressively go after the leakers for collaborating with the enemy.
moonsbreath on September 26, 2006 at 12:23 PM
I’d like to see them identify the leakers and then punish them using Sharia law, since they are apparently so anxious to assist our enemy in attaining that goal.
It doesn’t take research to know what the punishment for leaking classified government info would be for someone in an Islamic government.
Gregor on September 26, 2006 at 12:31 PM
I was glad to see the President being so forceful in his press conference and wish he’d be so more often. I would also like to see him going after these leakers. Until they do and these people are arrested, the leaks will continue like the Titanic until they sink this country.
Catie96706 on September 26, 2006 at 12:35 PM
Why is the Valerie Plame debacle the only “leak” that seems worthy of prosecution? Why even classify information if there’s no penalty for tossing it to the media?
Why don’t we let the media conduct videotaped polygraph tests on all of our field operatives? Who needs secrets?
Are we at war, or not? Why is it OK to pass out our classified playbook? That’s something the enemy does.
Pablo on September 26, 2006 at 12:40 PM
Prosecute the leakers.
BTW, Karzai threw a beautiful smackdown on some reporterette using this story as a basis for her questions. Limbaugh just played the audio.
JammieWearingFool on September 26, 2006 at 12:43 PM
So this time he should go after the leakers? Not like the time Rove leaked info?
GregH on September 26, 2006 at 12:43 PM
Yes, its amazing that the only Leak which has been throughly investigated, turned out to be a non issue, while all these other leaks don’t seem to get investigated…
Romeo13 on September 26, 2006 at 12:45 PM
Pablo, the reason is because the Plame leak was park of the right wing slander machine. This leak is done for the good of the American people.
See? Makes sense right?
This administration is going to continue to get screwed in this regard because they’re not following through with prosecuting the scum that feels Classified documents take a back seat to political positioning. Bush needs to get harsh on this…
StoutRepublican on September 26, 2006 at 12:53 PM
I’m not sure why we don’t just broadcast all security briefings, war strategy meetings, and any other classified meetings live on CNN or CSPAN. Our own government is so laced with spies that we don’t even bother to make an attempt to clean it up. Why is that?
Ronald McDonald did a better job of keeping the secret sauce from being leaked!
What’s amazing is that this would not even be tolerated at the local Starbucks. Even the smallest corporation would not allow the leaking of corporate secrets, but somehow the United States government does not seem to give a rat’s ass that we have legitimate traitors and spies with access to classified info during war.
Is there ANYONE who thinks it would take any effort at all to actually figure out who these people are?
Gregor on September 26, 2006 at 12:59 PM
The Dems cried wolf for so long with the Plame diversion that now no one wants to listen.
bbz123 on September 26, 2006 at 1:00 PM
Greg H is at it again. Greg … which info did Rove leak exactly? Have you not been paying attention?
Gregor on September 26, 2006 at 1:02 PM
This entire thng is a Roveian plot.. He used his CIA double agent to release info the the useful idiots at the Times, knowing that they would hold off and use it before the election for maximum impact. After it was released, they do their standard “no comment” until the Democrats get on board and start to use it against the administration. Rove then pulls the rug out from under them when the full report is released that refutes everything they claimed, which is what he planned to begin with.
Rove, you magnificent bastard..
madmonaco on September 26, 2006 at 1:24 PM
Uh oh – looks like Nancy wants to put a stop to the “rug pulling”. Desperate, indeed.
Editor on September 26, 2006 at 1:26 PM
According to the MSM and Bush-hating lovers of leaked classified information everywhere, we have created more terrorists by aggressively going after the terrorists.
Emboldening these terrorists and increasing their numbers would have nothing to do with …….
Hollywood putting out movies showing Jewish doctors chopping up Arab prisoners.
Michael Moore calling our president a buffoon who is destined to lose the war.
The NY Times carrying a story for weeks on end showing a handful of undisciplined and immature soldiers mistreating Arab prisoners at Abu Graib.
Cindy Sheehan and friends comparing our president to Hitler.
John Murtha calling our brave troops the bad guys in this war on terror.
Newsweek’s Michael Isikoff falsely claiming our troops flushed Korans down the toilet at Guitmo.
Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, Dick Durbin, Ted Kennedy, John Kerry et al, demanding we bring our troops home from an unwinnable war, while telling the world our president is a liar, our VP is a liar and our Sec of Defense is incompetent.
Former President Carter publicly chastising the policies of a sitting president in a time of war.
Time to look in the mirror libs, you whining, cry-baby, finger-pointing hypocrites. We live in an information age where our enemy watches and listens to our every move. Why don’t you quit lifting the spirits of our enemies and join the president in defeating them? Our survival is more important than any one party holding office.
fogw on September 26, 2006 at 1:46 PM
Great post fogw!
Gregor on September 26, 2006 at 1:56 PM
GregH,
Your talking points are hopelessly outdated and lack truthiness.
JammieWearingFool on September 26, 2006 at 2:08 PM
I imagine it would take quite an effort–this report especially would have a huge distribution list, at least the conclusions and summary parts. What is the real problem is that the intelligence agencies and now the military brass are turning against the administration. No reason to leak, it should be prosecuted, but there you are. Which is a much, much graver problem in the long run.
honora on September 26, 2006 at 2:42 PM
GregH, you really need to subscribe to a newspaper. It doesn’t matter which you choose as they all have finally reported the truth on the Plame debacle, and your naming Rove is old non-news that is as false as is your assumption. Have some pride, man!
Democrats’ lead by Pelousy, wanted to hold a closed door meeting on the leaked intelligence report. IMHO, I believe they would then have tried to take credit for the President declassifying that.
An investigation is definitely called for. The reporters need to be locked away until they divuldge their sources, then those sources need to be charged with treason!
DannoJyd on September 26, 2006 at 2:56 PM
Exactly right Danno. A reporter publishing “classified” documents is guilty of treason, and you start throwing these clowns in jail and it will stop real fast. Especially when they start naming sources who are then found guilty of treason.
Otherwise, why even bother to have a classified status at all?
Gregor on September 26, 2006 at 4:07 PM
Good post fogw. Let me add one to your list:
Dick Durbin comparing Gitmo and our handling of prisoners to the Nazis and gulags and Pol Pot.
Mallard T. Drake on September 26, 2006 at 4:17 PM
Thanks Gregor.
I believe the investigation into the Plame debacle gives us the precedent that we can follow, and I just hope we do exactly that. IMHO, this would very likely lead to the removal of a few libs in Congress.
DannoJyd on September 26, 2006 at 5:00 PM
honora, as subtle as you’re capable of, you imply again that it’s all Mr. Bush’s fault. Never mind the leaks, you write, it’s more dire that the intelligence agents and the military brass turn against our C-in-C. It is so sick. I never, ever, felt that way when Mr. Clinton was President, not even during the impeachment. My country was above all that. You should fault the traitors and the brass – alas, for you and yours this is not possible, sadly.
fogw, great once more; thank you!
Danno, they would have then leaked even more of the perceived negatives, and left out the positives, just so Mr. Bush and his party can be blamed for something, never mind that it’s their country too. With the MSM in their pockets they’d always be secure that the other part would never see the printed light.
Should I retire early in life, I’ll write the book on how Lefties will be treated by an Islamo-fascist power. For all our sake, I hope it will always be an abstract or fiction.
Entelechy on September 27, 2006 at 12:46 AM
Entelechy, it had already been reported that Bush was going to declassify the report, thus my assumption was they were going to try to take credit for that.
DannoJyd on September 27, 2006 at 1:28 AM
Danno, I don’t know the exact timing of events unfolded…I thought they wanted that closed door meeting, ahead of his decision to declassify. I simply don’t trust them for our protection and am always suspicious of their motives.
Entelechy on September 28, 2006 at 2:49 AM
Comment pages: