[Peace-discuss] Did he leak it?

[C. G. Estabrook]

  [The Obama administration is greatly afraid that the American people will find 
out what it's doing.]

US spy chief: no more 'blabbing secrets' to the media
(AFP) – 1 day ago

WASHINGTON — The chief of US intelligence has warned spy agencies against 
"blabbing secrets" to the media, saying employees should be "seen not heard."
In a blunt memo, James Clapper, the new director of national intelligence, 
scolded staff members about leaks that appeared in recent news reports, saying 
it was a "serious matter."
"I am concerned that recent leaks regarding our work have received prominent 
attention in the media," he said in the p
He did not say to which reports he was referring, but US newspapers have 
recently quoted unnamed officials about proposed drone CIA operations in Yemen 
and Afghan officials allegedly on the spy agency's payroll.
Top US officials were also stunned earlier in July by the release of tens of 
thousands of secret files on the war in Afghanistan, posted on the WikiLeaks 
website.
There are "established procedures for authorized officers to interact with the 
media," Clapper wrote.
But for other personnel, passing on classified information without approval "is 
both a serious matter and a diversion from the critical tasks we face.
"In other words, blabbing secrets to the media is not 'in' as far as I'm concerned."
Clapper recalled that when President Barack Obama nominated him to the 
intelligence director's position, "I said that people in the intelligence 
business should be like my grandchildren -- seen but not heard."
The Obama administration has adopted a tough line against leaks, filing charges 
against those suspected of disclosing classified information.
But news reporting suggests government officials continue to reveal secret 
details to journalists in an attempt to shape policy and undermine rival agencies.
The memo was the latest sign "that the administration remains vexed by leaks," 
said Steven Aftergood of the Federation of American Scientists, who writes a 
blog on government secrecy.
"But the memo itself is just a reminder, and doesn't seem to represent a new 
policy. The pending prosecutions send a more ominous signal," he told AFP in an 
email.
Last week, the Justice Department unveiled an indictment against a State 
Department contractor, Stephen Jin-Woo Kim, for allegedly passing on defense 
information. Kim has pleaded not guilty.
The case reportedly involves a 2009 intelligence assessment given to Fox News, 
saying that North Korea was likely to respond to UN sanctions by launching 
another nuclear test.
US Defense Secretary Robert Gates in July also gave a stern warning to the 
Pentagon work force over the media, saying those who violated the law would be 
prosecuted.
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