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Kerry Camp Accuses White House of Berger Leak
Yahoo (Reuters) ^ | 7/21/04 | staff

Posted on 07/21/2004 1:15:11 PM PDT by The_Victor

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrat John Kerry (news - web sites)'s presidential campaign accused the Bush White House on Wednesday of disclosing the existence of a criminal investigation against former national security adviser Sandy Berger for political advantage.

The objective of such a leak, the Kerry campaign said in a political memo distributed by email, was to take attention away from a report to be issued on Thursday by the commission investigating the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

The criminal investigation of Berger began last October but only came to light this week.

"The timing of this leak suggests that the White House is more concerned about protecting its political hide than hearing what the commission has to say about strengthening our security," the Kerry campaign said.

White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the White House had nothing to do with the disclosure that Berger, who was national security adviser under former President Bill Clinton (news - web sites), was under investigation for removing copies of highly classified documents from the National Archives.

"I'm not aware of how this story came about. I know of no one in the White House that is aware of how this story came about," McClellan said.

He said officials in the White House legal counsel's office were made aware of the Berger investigation some time ago because they were in charge of putting together documents for the Sept. 11 commission to see.

Complaining of the "questionable timing" of the leak, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee (news - web sites), Terry McAuliffe, filed a Freedom of Information Act request seeking the release of any correspondence between the Justice Department (news - web sites) and the White House on the Berger probe.

Berger and one of his lawyers said on Monday he had inadvertently removed copies of a classified memo, as well as his notes on the material, as he reviewed it to determine what Clinton administration-era documents could be turned over to the Sept. 11 commission.

Republicans have accused Berger of stealing the documents for use by Kerry's campaign. Berger was an informal foreign policy adviser for Kerry until he stepped down on Tuesday in the heat of the flap over the documents.

The Sept. 11 report is expected to detail as many as 10 missed opportunities to head off the Sept. 11 attacks but stop short of saying the attacks could have been prevented.


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Front Page News; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: berger; desperatedems; kerry; kerryberger; kerrycampaign; sandyberger; socks; soxgate; spongesamspypants; trousergate
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To: HenryLeeII

Come to think of it, my analysis is a bit off, because back when he was pilfering the documents, Kerry wasn't the nominee. So, perhaps he was trying to cover Clinton's or his own butt. And/or...perhaps he was also taking notes to be used (by him for political gain) for whomever the potential nominee was.


241 posted on 07/22/2004 10:59:13 AM PDT by Sea2ShiningSea (Yeah! Us FReepers got vision and the rest of the world wear bifocals!)
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To: Sea2ShiningSea
Come to think of it, my analysis is a bit off, because back when he was pilfering the documents, Kerry wasn't the nominee.

You know, you're the first person I've seen bring this point up. Back in September and October '03 Howard Dean was the inevitable nominee, and Kerry was floundering with everyone else in the Dem pack. I even thought Gephardt had a better shot than Kerry for a while.

So, he's stealing multiple drafts of a Clinton-era document, at a time when he couldn't have really been doing this for Kerry (since no remotely rational person would risk his reputation and jail time for someone that "didn't have a chance" at being the nominee). This all adds up to him covering his own fanny and that of the Clintonistas. Great point!

242 posted on 07/22/2004 11:45:33 AM PDT by HenryLeeII (Rest in peace, sultan88)
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To: HenryLeeII
Well thanks. But....I sure wish I knew the whole scoop on this! No matter what his motives or who they meant to benefit they wreak of "cover-up" and are not inadvertent one bit. And no matter how the dems try and spin it, he looks corrupt at worst and at the very least, very, very, scatterbrained! Not GOOD! And he was an adviser and a potential cabinet nominee. Sheez! To me it makes all of the lot look bad, from Clinton right down to Kerry. His actions have tainted all of them!
243 posted on 07/22/2004 12:59:13 PM PDT by Sea2ShiningSea (Yeah! Us FReepers got vision and the rest of the world wear bifocals!)
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To: Sea2ShiningSea
As a further thought on this, although Berger was most likely doing this to protect himself and/or the former Clinton admin.'s reputations, there are still documents missing so its not illogical to think that info from them could have wound up on Kerry's website (either directly from the docs or from Berger's memory).

Now, if Berger in fact gave him classified info, this raises the point that Kerry has sat on the Senate Intelligence Committee (SSCI) for a number of years and didn't recognize this as being classified info. What does that say for his judgement and fitness to be president? This should be a reflection on both, but it won't be in the press and among the general public.

244 posted on 07/22/2004 1:21:16 PM PDT by HenryLeeII (Rest in peace, sultan88)
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To: The_Victor

The 9/11 Commission shouldn't have timed their report to distract from the important issues, like the Bergler news.


245 posted on 07/22/2004 1:26:44 PM PDT by Taliesan (fiction police)
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To: The_Victor; Grampa Dave

The really pathetic thing is that Kerry is trying to establish his national security bona fides with the voters and yet his own ntl security advisor was the subject of a criminal investigation for security breaches and Kerry "didn't have a clue" (his actual words to Tom Brokaw).

Man, the Bush team is gonna have a lot of fun with that statetment in campaign ads.


246 posted on 07/22/2004 1:33:45 PM PDT by Liz
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To: Liz


Kerry said he "didn't have a clue"

Right now and for once in my life I believe Kerry.

The Clintoons sent the Bergular over as a walking human time bomb after he had been caught with Dox in his Sox.

Bergular then proceeded set the Kerrorists up with purlioned data. Then right before the rat convention and a few days before the release of the 9/11 report, the Bergular leaks on himself.

This will creat mass hate and hostility behind closed doors at the Rat convention. I doubt if Kerry will be able dodge the his own words, "I didn't have a clue!" Kerry with his own words is now not exactly who, a sane person wants for his president during a war for our survival.


247 posted on 07/22/2004 1:40:41 PM PDT by Grampa Dave (Inability to recognize the serious crimes done by the Bergular are symptons of Mad Troll Disease!)
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To: Grampa Dave

A good idea would be for the Dims to hand out packets of purple kool-aid at the convention with post-its attached saying "Do not drink til Nov 4."


248 posted on 07/22/2004 2:08:31 PM PDT by Liz
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To: The_Victor
Gee, Kerry is a day behind the ball. Wasn't yesterdays DNC talking points that the Republicans leaked the info?

Kerry is a day late.

249 posted on 07/22/2004 2:12:45 PM PDT by Lady Heron
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To: Liz

As this Soxgate unravels, we will see the Rats on ABCNNBC BS, in Follywood and in the print media go beserk with their hatred of GW and us.

That will drive away more independent and moderate voters to our side.

Then when GW kicks their A$$es in November, they will start their hate of GW. Everything GW does or doesn't do will bring demands of empeachment.

We may just have our second civil war as we meet them in the streets to protect our president and our country.


250 posted on 07/22/2004 2:14:26 PM PDT by Grampa Dave (Inability to recognize the serious crimes done by the Bergular are symptons of Mad Troll Disease!)
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To: The_Victor

Oops, sorry I should have looked to see what day this story was posted on. LOL!


251 posted on 07/22/2004 2:14:40 PM PDT by Lady Heron
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To: Lady Heron

"Gee, Kerry is a day behind the ball. Wasn't yesterdays DNC talking points that the Republicans leaked the info?
Kerry is a day late."

Yesterday, the impact of Berger outing himself was like a bomb going off in the Komrade Kerry Kamp.

None of them will trust any rat who worked for the Clintoons, Dean or Clark. KKKers who stay will probably have to pass polygraph tests and police background checks. That will wipe even more of Kerry's insiders.

The Kennedys and Clintoons will be knife fighting each other behind closed doors. This could be the real end of the Kennedy empire.

As republicans, we can buy our popcorn and set back and watch them implode, fight each other and stab each other in the back. We don't get in the way. If they start to calm down, we find something else to make them hate each other even more.


252 posted on 07/22/2004 2:20:23 PM PDT by Grampa Dave (Inability to recognize the serious crimes done by the Bergular are symptons of Mad Troll Disease!)
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To: Grampa Dave

Dims don't seem to realize they are their own worst enemy. They operate in a total vacuum.

They also despise the fact that Whoopie and Ronstadt got flamed b/c of their hatred for GWB.

Thank God for FR. No matter what they try, we'll surf the h3ll out of thses suckers.


253 posted on 07/22/2004 2:31:48 PM PDT by Liz
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