Clinton blasts State Department leaks as 'an attack'

[scandal 951]

Clinton blasts State Department leaks as 'an attack'

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration scrambled Monday to control the diplomatic damage from a quarter-million leaked State Department documents reverberating across the nation's capital and around the globe.

The White House ordered a government-wide review of procedures to safeguard classified data and vowed to prosecute anyone who broke U.S. law by leaking the latest trove of documents to the online whistle-blower WikiLeaks.

"This disclosure is not just an attack on America's foreign policy interests," Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said. "It is an attack on the international community — the alliances and partnerships, the conversations and negotiations, that safeguard global security and advance economic prosperity."

Attorney General Eric Holder said the government was conducting a criminal investigation and would hold responsible "anybody who was involved in the breaking of American law."

The e-mails and other documents released by WikiLeaks provide a rare glimpse into government negotiations and unfolding world events.

Governments in Europe condemned the leaks. Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini dubbed them "the Sept. 11 of world diplomacy."

White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said President Obama was "not pleased," calling that reaction "an understatement."

At the center of the controversy were The New York Times and other news organizations that began publishing stories about the documents on Sunday. The Times defended publication of the documents as serving "an important public interest."

Few current or former U.S. officials agreed. Rep. Pete Hoekstra of Michigan, senior Republican on the House Intelligence Committee, called the leak a "catastrophic" breach of trust.

The documents, which WikiLeaks said would be released over a period of months, show:

•U.S. diplomats were instructed to collect personal data on United Nations officials, including flight schedules, credit card numbers, Internet passwords and even some biometric information.

Former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton questioned the authenticity of that cable. "I have never seen one like that," he said. Diplomats "are not competent to engage in espionage."

Clinton defended the diplomats' work. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said, "Our diplomats don't break the law."

•Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia, are far more concerned about Iran's nuclear program than they have said publicly. "It should not be a surprise to anyone that Iran is a source of great concern, not only in the United States," Clinton said.

•The U.S. bartered with other countries to try to get them to take some of the terrorism suspects being held at the Guantanamo Bay prison.

[^_^ 5,021]

They need to assassinate Assange and all high level staff members of Wikileaks. Send a fu c k I n g message that just because your first name is Julian and not Ahmed and just because you speak English and wear nice suits and reporters love you... doesn't make you any less of a terrorist.

[scandal 951]

They need to assassinate Assange and all high level staff members of Wikileaks. Send a fu c k I n g message that just because your first name is Julian and not Ahmed and just because you speak English and wear nice suits and reporters love you... doesn't make you any less of a terrorist.

Yeah, he's a Class A dipshit that's for sure. He makes a powerful case for being put out of his misery.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

You know... you can say what you like about the wikileaks guy but when 3 million people have access to supposedly "secret" information, you can't really call it secret. It's the government's job to ensure that official secrets are kept secret.

How was it that a 23 year old soldier in afghanistan was able to perpetrate the biggest theft of secret material in us history? All he did was burn documents he had access to, to cd....

They need to assassinate Assange and all high level staff members of Wikileaks. Send a fu c k I n g message that just because your first name is Julian and not Ahmed and just because you speak English and wear nice suits and reporters love you... doesn't make you any less of a terrorist.

It's not terrorism.

[^_^ 5,021]

You know... you can say what you like about the wikileaks guy but when 3 million people have access to supposedly "secret" information, you can't really call it secret. It's the government's job to ensure that official secrets are kept secret.

How was it that a 23 year old soldier in afghanistan was able to perpetrate the biggest theft of secret material in us history? All he did was burn documents he had access to, to cd....

You're right. That said, it's still theft and the people who publicized knew they were in possession of classified documents. Yes, the US government screwed up but the other actors here aren't innocent little bystanders. They're malicious and frankly behave as one would expect an enemy to behave. They ought to be treated as enemies.

It's not terrorism.

We can argue about the legalese all day or night. They are clearly enemies of the United States and assassination should not be ruled out as an appropriate response.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

If you adopt that position then journalists could be regarded as "enemies" too for reprinting this material. Calling everyone under the sun a terrorist is something from the last administration. I thought we'd moved beyond that.

[Obama 2012 1,714]

It's not terrorism.

you're right. It's treason.

Which warrants a single bullet to his head.

[spookyturtle 9,466]

you're right. It's treason.

Which warrants a single bullet to his head.

Boom! Headshot.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

If he isn't a us citizen it's not treason either. I don't think there is a precedent for this situation, to be honest.

[^_^ 5,021]

Good so then we can set one. Assassinate him and his direct reports. I like that precedent.

[spookyturtle 9,466]

Do you guys know where Julian Assange is from? :devil:

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Yeah that'll do wonders for the US' reputation abroad. There will be a legal solution.

[Bad_Daddy 2,209]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pentagon_Papers

Pentagon Papers

[Pooky 3,825]

Do you guys know where Julian Assange is from? :devil:

Spooky, are you pondering what I'm pondering?

Edited November 30, 2010 by Pooky

[luckytxn 2,265]

Do you guys know where Julian Assange is from? :devil:

Yepper. Haven't seen any posting and kinda miss him. He was easy to get riled and fun to kick while down.