The thing to take away from this post by Jacob Sullum is that the Bush administration’s concession that it classifies information that presents no security risk at all but that would be politically damaging to the president. Actually, it’s worse than that. They think that any information that could be politically damaging to the president by definition is a threat to national security. They’re using the classification of information to hide evidence of wrongdoing in the White House. And that they’ll declassify the same information when doing so would be politically advantageous to the president.
***Meanwhile, the Department of Justice is claiming that the White House Administration Office is exempt from the Freedom of Information Act, a claim that would be farcical if it weren’t so flippin’ scary.
It also raises the question: If the adminstration office of the highest position in government–the office through which most White House information passes–is immune from the Freedom of Information Act, exactly what is the Freedom of Information Act for?
Silly Radley. The dhimmocrats are worse!
Path
John, have you read this story about how some Iraq corruption whistleblowers have actually been tortured? Honestly, there are no words to describe how something like this can be happening.
jake
So compared to what people suspect, the truth is that much worse. How reassuring.
Was Bush helping Vick kill dogs?
But who the hell cares about political damage to this piece of garbage? He’s on his way out, no one with half a brain cell likes him, he does whatever the fuck he wants and to hell with the Constitution.
Conclusion: They don’t give a shit about political damage, they’re just doing it because they can.
Duh! To give people the impression that they have the right to get information from the government. The minute Bush43 stepped into office, the FOIA request process slowed w-a-a-y down. I’m surprised they haven’t voided the whole thing by now. “For reasons of national security, we can’t tell you shit.”
And don’t forget EO 13233: Less than a month after a devastating attack on US soil, GoneZo saw the burning need to limit access to the records of former presidents. No wonder Bush made him AG.
myiq2xu
It’s cuz YOU CAN’T HANDLE THE TRUTH!
cleek
oh well. another example of Bush malfeasance that will never amount to anything.
just wait till the next Dem president, though. then we’ll see some real oversight, by congress and the press!
Davis X. Machina
They’re using the classification of information to hide evidence of wrongdoing in the White House. And that they’ll declassify the same information when doing so would be politically advantageous to the president.
The organs of the State exist to serve the Party, and not the other way round, because of the Party’s unique leading role as Vanguard of the Revolution. All correctly-oriented cadres know that.
And Sailing the Seas still depends on the Helmsman.
Tulkinghorn
At this point we might as well let them do what they want. When the Democrats take over, that is if they are allowed to take over, then we can open everything up and make the appropriate referrals for crimnal prosecution. The only way to get at them is through a special prosecutor law, and I, for one, do not want a special prosecutor law being directed against the next Democratic administration.
We can’t trust the GOP to conduct honest oversight over Republicans or Democrats. We can’t trust them to run a legal administration. We can’t trust their judges to uphold the very precedents that they promised to honor, under oath, during their confirmation hearings.
So this can go either of three ways. The GOP legitimately wins the Congress and the presidency in 2008, with the predictable results; The GOP loses and gives up power, the Dems declassify everything, and LOT of Republicans end up in prison, or the GOP loses and somehow refuses to give up power. Life could get very interesting around here.
KCinDC
Tulkinghorn, you’re forgetting the option where the GOP loses and gives up power and the Democrats say that the Bush era is over, that the misdeeds aren’t worth pursuing now that the people responsible are out of power, and that we need to move on.
Tulkinghorn
The Congressional Dems are pathetic, but are they that pathetic??
And you you think someone like Dick Cheney thinks he can trust them to be that foregiving?
The Other Steve
Bush has probably been the worst President we’ve had in the last century with regards to national security.
It’s just utterly amazing to me to see them declassify stuff just to win political points. Trying to remember the specifics, but as I recall back in 2004 they blew the cover on a world wide investigation into a terrorist group, solely because they were getting some bad press and needed to change the subject. The British police had to rapidly move to arrest the people before they got away, months before they were ready with a case built against the group.
jake
And before that they needed to blow the cover on a US anti-terrorism operation because someone’s husband refused to say Hussein had a ton of yellowcake under his bed.
Makes you wonder who exactly is the “They” in THEY WANT 2 KILL US! (TM)
KCinDC
The Other Steve, maybe you’re thinking of this incident?
Tulkinghorn, unfortunately I fear the Democrats are that pathetic. And I’m sure Cheney has already destroyed any documentation there is of his misdeeds and will continue to do so for the rest of his term. There’s a reason these guys are saying they’re immune to requirements for records preservation, FOIA, and so on.
TenguPhule
Citizen, your clearance is not high enough to know that.
Report to the nearest termination center immediately for molecular reorganization.
And Remember, Friend Computer is always watching.
TenguPhule
Fixed by Friend Computer. Remember, the Computer is your Friend!
DecidedFenceSitter
*Sigh* And as someone who has a clearance, I can note that you specifically cannot classify something because it is embarrassing or inconvenient. *Sigh*