RSS Feed MenuCIA officials are being outed but this time no one seems to care. After CIA official Valerie Plame’s identity was revealed by Lewis Libby, Congress passed the Intelligence Identity Protection Act that made it illegal to publicly “out” a CIA official. After the lesson of Plame, it seems incredible that Attorney General Eric Holder is dragging his feet in investigating how CIA officials were recently outed by the defense attorneys of terrorists.
In August 2009, senior Al Qaeda enemy combatants at Guantanamo Bay were shown photographs taken of CIA officials leaving their homes, by their defense attorneys. In addition, Bill Gertz recently reported in the Washington Times that more photographs were shown to the detainees.
This, however, is no surprise considering Holder brought a group of lawyers into the DOJ who were aggressively defending enemy combatants, a conflict of interest at best. Former operative John Kiriakou, who recently wrote, The Reluctant Spy: My Secret Life in the CIA’s War on Terror, stated passionately that, “AG Holder needs to start placing as much emphasis on the safety, protection, and rights of CIA officers as he places on the protection, safety and rights of the accused terrorists.”
Senator Kit Bond, the Republican chairman of the Senate intelligence committee, shares the CIA’s outrage. His press secretary told FrumFourm that “Senator Bond believes it is appalling that the same Attorney General, who so eagerly initiated a witch hunt against the CIA, is stalling on investigating whether these attorneys have endangered the lives of terror fighters who have kept us safe from attack since 9/11.”
Former CIA agents and intelligence specialists cannot understand why there are no outcries from Congress. Said a current CIA operative, “In recent days Congress has demonstrated just how impotent they really are to do the right thing for the country. Not only has this incident put CIA officers’ lives in danger, it has also brought attention to their spouses and children. What better way for a bad guy to make a statement then to murder a CIA Officer and his/her family! To me, these scumbags should not only be convicted of treason, they should also be charged with being an accessory to a plan to commit murder.”
Intelligence specialist Francis Townsend cannot understand why this act is not being pursued with an aggressive investigation. She explained that “there is a process if the defense needs access to governmental witnesses, its’ called discovery. The notion of what was done is outrageous and may in fact be a crime.”
Michael Hayden, the former CIA director, pointedly stated “You can’t be stalking the CIA officers in Northern Virginia, taking pictures of current officers, and then showing the pictures to the detainees at Guantanamo. Don’t tell me it’s not a big deal. Besides the actual event, I am outraged that it was a one day story and no one has followed it up. These men and women had their picture taken getting into their car after kissing their spouses and going to work. It’s unbelievable.”
Hopefully word will get out and the silent majority will be awakened. A former high-ranking CIA official sarcastically commented that he wanted the American public to “understand that there are some monumentally dumb people working to help the terrorists. I am certain they THINK they are working for justice, but they have standards quite different than most Americans.”
TerryF99 // Mar 19, 2010 at 8:14 am
“After CIA official Valerie Plame’s identity was revealed by Dick Cheney”
Fixed
Independent // Mar 19, 2010 at 11:12 am
ahh, TeaBag, you know very well that former Veep Cheney didn’t reveal low level, inactive desk agent Plame’s identity to anyone. Jus another fake story, false attribution from the farLeft trolls heading deep into outer space.
Obama, Holder and most of the farLeft have long harbored a hatred and suspicion of anything dealing with natl intel gathering professionals, the military, covert ops, police affairs, etc.
It arises out of their preference for the preservation of civil rights at any cost, the protection of criminals in the justice system, their grand doubts about the merits in aggressively defending American interests abroad and their reliance on what Obama had now crystallized in practice as the “Big Hugs Heal All” diplomacy –even if it’s Iran and nuke weapons, al Qaeda and the jihad against the West, or North Korea selling nuke waste to worldwide terrorists for a dirty bomb. Obama thinks these are fractured people who just need some Big Love and all will be well.
it’s why, if Obama had been elected in 2000, we’d still be trying to get the UN to adopt sanctions against Saddam and still be losing pilots over Iraq.
But if Israel does something out of school, it’s punish the infidels time!
Allowing 7-8-9-10 al Qaeda lawyers inside the DOJ was Eric Holder’s and the Obami’s 1st mistake. Allowing the same kind of lawyers to stalk a real, active CIA field agents –not someone like Plame who was, at best, a low level has-been outing herself at her kid’s school functions– is morally and criminally wrong.
But in an Administration that openly despises the CIA and field agents in the1st place, what does one expect?
Electing these people to office has consequences. Granted, Americans are waking up to the fact it was a horrible mistake, but they are in office and expecting Holder to suddenly act responsible is like expecting Obama to be bipartisan –it ain’t in their character. No way.
Independent // Mar 19, 2010 at 11:21 am
What do you think the chances are that the farLef trolls at FF will play-out TeaBagged’s attempt at diversion from this real CIA agent outing story and try to spin it off into a revisitation of the Plame matter?
I’m taking odds –95% chance they’ll divert to Plame? 96%? 100%? What did the Daily Kos tell them to do this morning?
jerseyboy // Mar 19, 2010 at 11:37 am
I agree that showing photos of CIA employees to individuals held at Guantanamo Bay is highly improper and potentially dangerous. However, I think it is more a matter of overzealous defense counsel failing to recognize the potential danger of doing so, rather than an attempt to conspire in the murder of CIA personnel.
GayPatriot » CIA Agents Outed to Terrorist Suspects; Media Silent // Mar 19, 2010 at 12:03 pm
[...] now, “Attorney General Eric Holder is dragging his feet in investigating how CIA officials were recently o…“: In August 2009, senior Al Qaeda enemy combatants at Guantanamo Bay were shown photographs [...]
balconesfault // Mar 19, 2010 at 12:14 pm
This, however, is no surprise considering Holder brought a group of lawyers into the DOJ who were aggressively defending enemy combatants, a conflict of interest at best.
You do realize that they were aggressively defending people accused of being enemy combatants, right?
In the case of many detainees, there was never any “battlefield capture” … but rather a source directing our intelligence agencies to arrest someone.
“AG Holder needs to start placing as much emphasis on the safety, protection, and rights of CIA officers as he places on the protection, safety and rights of the accused terrorists.”
A stirring statement. I suspect that Eric Holder didn’t really need that lecture, however.
“Senator Bond believes it is appalling that the same Attorney General, who so eagerly initiated a witch hunt against the CIA, is stalling on investigating whether these attorneys have endangered the lives of terror fighters who have kept us safe from attack since 9/11.”
Another stirring speech. It is sad when our elected officials consider clearing out the cobwebs of extra-legal and illegal activities under the Bush Administration to be a “witch hunt”.
I do understand why for political purposes, Kit Bond would want to make this claim.
Not only has this incident put CIA officers’ lives in danger, it has also brought attention to their spouses and children. What better way for a bad guy to make a statement then to murder a CIA Officer and his/her family!
What this supposes is that a detainee … and for that matter, a detainee who is found completely innocent and thus released … must be able to remember individual faces of people he has never seen before from a stack of photographs (if he had seen them while in detention, then he wouldn’t need a photograph to know their involvement, would he?) … well enough to figure out how to identify that individual in the future (google face search?) by name so he could find him.
Note that this procedure was not conducted by some nerdy ACLU guys … this was uniformed military officers like Air Force Col. Peter Masciola you’re essentially accusing of treason. Col. Peter Masciola, former President of the Judge Advocates Military Bar Association (JAA), and former Chair of the Federal Tort and Military Advocacy Section of the American Trial Lawyers Association.
jreb // Mar 19, 2010 at 12:57 pm
Another prime example of partisan politics by the Democrats of selectively choosing to enforce or not enforce laws. The Intelligence Identities Protection Act of 1982 was passed the House by a vote of 315–32, with all opposing votes coming from Democrats. The law passed the Senate 81–4, with the opponents being Democratic Senators Joseph Biden, Gary Hart, and Daniel Patrick Moynihan, and Republican Senator Charles Mathias. Unfortunately it appears as long as we have a Democrat administration in power, the Democrats are more concerned with granting civil rights to terrorists and terrorist regimes than protecting the lives of citizens who take the fight to the terrorists.
BTW I didn’t realize that “teabag” had changed his handle to “TerryF99”. I’d bet “Independent” the odds at 100% that you are right at 100%.
balconesfault // Mar 19, 2010 at 1:26 pm
BTW I didn’t realize that “teabag” had changed his handle to “TerryF99”.
I suspect the same – but then again I would think that Conservatives would appreciate this name change. You could simply ask them, though.
Intelligence Identities Protection Act of 1982 was passed the House by a vote of 315–32,
The Intelligence Identities Protection Act also applies protections to a very defined set of people – agents whom one knows to be in or recently in certain covert roles with a U.S. intelligence agency.
Given that the photos were being shown to the detainees by lawyers in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps of the US Army, I imagine that they were also very aware of the provisions of the Intelligence Identities Protection Act.
In the case of Valery Plame, the CIA formally declared that Plame was a covert agent at the time of the leak, indicating a violation of this Act. In this case, even though the CIA was under the direction of Republican appointees, I do not think that there has been any such declaration.
Unfortunately it appears as long as we have a Democrat administration in power, the Democrats are more concerned with granting civil rights to terrorists and terrorist regimes than protecting the lives of citizens who take the fight to the terrorists.
You are implicitly accusing US Army officers of actions against the interest of the United States that must be prosecuted.
agentprovocateur // Mar 19, 2010 at 3:59 pm
“BTW I didn’t realize that ‘teabag’ had changed his handle to ‘TerryF99′.”
Perhaps you also didn’t realize that Indepenent too has changed his/her handle. Multiple times. And yet, he/she wants to point that out in others. Glass houses, MI-GOPer, er, GOProud, er, Independent, glass houses.
Independent // Mar 19, 2010 at 4:29 pm
B’fault opines to a silent room, quoting Ms Cooper, : ““AG Holder needs to start placing as much emphasis on the safety, protection, and rights of CIA officers as he places on the protection, safety and rights of the accused terrorists.”
B’fault’s opinion: A stirring statement. I suspect that Eric Holder didn’t really need that lecture, however.”
Actually, given Holder’s hiring of 7-8-9-10 former al Qaeda lawyers onto the DOJ staff and his decision to remain silent about the true nature of those new hires and their responsibilities –it would seem that Eric Holder does need some instruction.
After all, this is the guy who listened to the al Qaeda lawyers and tried to move the show trial to NYC.
After all, this is the guy who’s demonstrated supreme mismanagement at DOJ by hiring former ACORN lawyers into senior positions at DOJ and then suspending the FBI investigations into ACORN’s illegal activities on behalf of Obama and Democrats.
Smoke, fire?
I guess for someone like B’fault –who is so used to shooting blanks from the hip holstered revolver he wears– he wouldn’t know “smoke” when he sees it. Plus, shooting from the hip is so inaccurate… oh wait, accurate is just for GOPers.
agent’P? How’s that echo chamber working? For a group of guys who organize their daily comments at FF by first checking the marching orders at the Daily Kos, I’d have thought there’d be better echo by you.
Independent // Mar 19, 2010 at 4:36 pm
B’fault: “You are implicitly accusing US Army officers of actions against the interest of the United States that must be prosecuted.”
Umm, got that one wrong by a mile or more, B’fault. Quick lesson… the parroting of your troll partners is what’s supposed to echo in the chamber… not your logic. Because the only way to explain that brain infarc is logic bouncing off the walls.
As long as we have a Democrat Administration that is more concerned about protecting and defending the rights of terrorists –and the Obami DOJ is a perfect example of that liberal ACLU mindset– why should anyone expect that same Administration to protect the men and women serving to bring the terrorists to justice or destroy the terrorists’ capacity to wage war against Americans.
Obama and Holder are just being good, farLeft Obami. Lock step with the ACLU. Israel haters to the man. Protectors of terrorist rights. Apologists to the muslim world. Anti-military, anti-CIA.
It’s part of their character and it exudes from their political actions.
balconesfault // Mar 19, 2010 at 4:54 pm
Actually, given Holder’s hiring of 7-8-9-10 former al Qaeda lawyers
Former al Qaeda lawyers? That would imply that al Qaeda was paying them.
Or it would sugges that you’re a hack.
After all, this is the guy who’s demonstrated supreme mismanagement at DOJ by hiring former ACORN lawyers
And that has exactly what to do with the discussion of the CIA issue here?
B’fault: “You are implicitly accusing US Army officers of actions against the interest of the United States that must be prosecuted.”
Umm, got that one wrong by a mile or more, B’fault.
Perhaps you would like to actually tell us how this is not a charge against the uniformed JAG officers who showed the photos of CIA employees and contractors to the detainees?
Or do you want to just keep pissing against the wall?
jreb // Mar 19, 2010 at 6:26 pm
Actually balconesfault you are the one that implied the defense attorneys were part of the US Army, no one else has made that implication. Could it have been attorneys from the ACLU or Human Rights Watch who were also defending accused terrorists?
balconesfault // Mar 19, 2010 at 7:35 pm
Actually balconesfault you are the one that implied the defense attorneys were part of the US Army, no one else has made that implication.
It’s not an implication. It’s a fact. And a rather easy one to check, if one were so inclined.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/08/20/AR2009082004295.html?hpid=topnews
Detainees Shown CIA Officers’ Photos
Justice Dept. Looking Into Whether Attorneys Broke Law at Guantanamo
By Peter Finn
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, August 21, 2009
The Justice Department recently questioned military defense attorneys at Guantanamo Bay about whether photographs of CIA personnel, including covert officers, were unlawfully provided to detainees charged with organizing the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, according to sources familiar with the investigation.
…
It is unclear whether the military lawyers under investigation identified the CIA personnel in the photographs to the al-Qaeda suspects or simply asked the detainees whether they had ever seen them. It is also unclear whether the inquiry involves violations of federal statutes prohibiting the identification of covert CIA officers or violations of military commission rules governing the disclosure of classified information, including to the defendants.
The investigation is being overseen by John Dion, head of the Justice Department’s counter-espionage section, who has worked on many high-profile national security cases, including the prosecution of Aldrich H. Ames, the CIA mole who spied for the Soviet Union. The CIA reports security breaches to Dion’s office. The Justice Department and the CIA declined to comment.
jreb // Mar 19, 2010 at 8:13 pm
Actually it probably was civilian attorneys working pro-bono for enemy combatants. In January of this year a pamphlet from Amnesty International was found in one of the detainee’s cell which had been smuggled in by a civilian attorney working for Paul, Weiss law firm through “legal mail”. Incidentally “legal mail” is exempt from screening by security personnel and is limited to privileged lawyer-client communication related to representation of the detainee.
Other incidents by civilian attorneys include: a lawyer who provided a hand-drawn map of a detention’s camp layout, including guard towers; a lawyer who sent a letter to his detainee client telling him that “we cannot depend on the military to do the right thing” and conveying a message of support to other detainees who were not his clients; lawyers posting photos of Gitmo security badges on the internet; lawyers providing news outlets with detainee “interviews” using questions provided in advance; and a lawyer who gave his client a list of all detainees.
antimedia // Mar 19, 2010 at 8:44 pm
Geez, get your facts straight. Valerie Plame wasn’t outed by Lewis Libby or Dick Cheney. Richard Armitage, Colin Powell’s assistant, is the one who outed her to Robert Novak, as both Armitage and Novak have publicly stated (and also came out in court testimony during the Libby investigation.)
Furthermore, the Intelligence Identity Protection Act was passed in 1982, long before the Plame affair occurred.
Don’t you feel any responsibility at all to check your facts before posting stuff on your blog?
balconesfault, the WaPo story you cite is deliberately misleading. The John Adams Project and the ACLU were the ones who photographed CIA agents and gave those photos to military defense attorneys. It is not clear whether the military defense attorneys knew they were photos of CIA agents when they allegedly showed the photos to their clients.
balconesfault // Mar 19, 2010 at 11:57 pm
balconesfault, the WaPo story you cite is deliberately misleading.
Actually, the story states the information about the ACLU and the John Adams projects. I truncated it in order to highlight that there is no charge made that anyone by the uniformed military attorneys showed these pictures to the detainees.
In addition, contrary to the Plame Case, to the best of my knowledge the CIA has never declared that the agents in question were protected by the Act. If the CIA does not make this claim, the Justice Department cannot actually prosecute someone under the Intelligence Identity Protection Act.
I’m perplexed by your last statement, antimedia. I would assume that the military attorneys would ask why they were being given photographs to show to the detainees, and that they would want to be assured that the photographs might somehow be material to the case before doing so. They’ve certainly not made any public claims that they were duped somehow.
Continuity You Can Believe In | FrumForum // Apr 7, 2010 at 8:06 am
[...] and legal jeopardy. Our Elise Cooper has reported well on this abuse, see for example here and here. But some conservative criticism of the president has, ironically, given him undeserved political [...]