Leaks For Me But Not For Thee
In response to the furor over the AP and Rosen investigations, Obama noted the threat that leaks pose to national security:
“As commander-in-chief, I believe we must keep information secret that protects our operations and our people in the field. To do so, we must enforce consequences for those who break the law and breach their commitment to protect classified information. But a free press is also essential for our democracy. “
In a rational world, he would be referring to things like this:
It was the Obama administration that sealed the fate of the Pakistani doctor jailed for helping nail Usama Bin Laden, by divulging key details after the fact and dooming any chance Shakil Afridi’s cover story could win his freedom, according to a confidential Pakistani report.
When former Secretary of Defense and ex-CIA Director Leon Panetta publicly acknowledged Afridi’s role in the ruse which helped the CIA pinpoint Bin Laden’s presence in an Abbottabad compound, any chance that Pakistani authorities could help him get out of the country vanished, according to what some have called Pakistan’s version of the 9/11 Commission, a 357-page report from an independent body set up to probe the aftermath of the 2011 raid by Navy SEALs in which the Al Qaeda leader was killed.
“The statement by the U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, who was the CIA Director when May 2 happened, confirming the role of Dr. Afridi in making the U.S. assassination mission a success, rendered much of what Afridi told the Commission very questionable if not outright lies,” states the report, which has not been released, but which FoxNews.com has viewed.
As I wrote about a year ago, this administration leaks furiously information that makes it look good, even though these leaks (like the one involving Afridi, or the apprehension of the would-be junk bomber in Yemen, or the US involvement in Stuxnet) are deeply damaging.
In every administration there has been a considerable amount of for-me-but-not-for-thee hypocrisy when it comes to leaking about national security. But nothing like what we’ve seen in the Age of Obama.
Any thoughts on what was behind the Seal Team 6 tragedy in their giant troop carrying helicopter following Usama?
Comment by SamuelCyrus — November 30, 2013 @ 2:57 am
@SamuelCyrus. I always considered that the fortunes of war. CH-47 flying through a valley is pretty vulnerable. The Golden BB. It only takes one. Coming to the aid of a Ranger unit . . . ambushes of reinforcing units in Indian country are not that unusual.