"15) As such, ANYBODY who has worked in this environment and heard Mr. Berger's comments yesterday about being "sloppy" and "an honest mistake" knows beyond any doubt that he was not only lying, but this was a premeditated act."
Without a doubt.
The dims are hopeful the media can succeed. The media and talking heads are trying to make it sound innocent and inadvertent. They are playing on the fact that most people don't know what is required to handle Top Secret code word documents. They are trying to trivialize things and put actions into common word terms. It is not that way at all. Nothing is simple about top secret.
The toon ex-President laughing about it says all you need to know about his view of national security. And we wonder what caused the attacks on 9/11.
I mention this because Berger's lawyer yesterday made statements which seem to imply that it is only the original document and not information gleaned from it which is classified and non-discloseable. Of course, the press played happily along.
What Berger did would get any sailor 30 years to life in Leavenworth. Let's see what happens to another teflon Clintonite.
Great post. But I have yet to get an answer to my question, "why does Berger still have a TS clearance?". My experience in Classified Printing and Pub. for USAREUR in the early 70's is that upon leaving one's position, he is debriefed and further access is prohibited, despite personal authorship or involvement.
Thank you for sharing your great insight. Good information.
Thanks for this valuable post.
This is a great post, one I've quoted on other threads when you posted it before. Personally, I wish someone would send a copy to all the talking heads--perhaps starting with Bill O'Reilly, who can't seem to get a grip on the reason Berger was criminally wrong!
Just a thought (and perhaps someone else has mentioned it):
The dems have questioned the timing of the leak, the inference being to draw attention away from the 9/11 report or to damage Kerry prior to the convention.
Maybe they are telling a 1/2 truth.
I do believe the dems are the source of the leak. And the timing is very, very important.
re:".....The latest word I have heard is that this material was classified "Code Word Access". Folks, if true, this is "Above Top Secret" ie. John Pollard type material.
So the question comes to mind, why would anybody do such a thing under conditions where he knew he stood a huge chance of being caught? The mission must have been extraordinary for such a risk. The presumption is that he wanted to alter or remove and destroy material that implicated either himself, or quite possibly Mr. Clinton. The fact that some of the material is "lost" implies that regardless of the consequences, the mission has been accomplished with his current situation collateral damage....."
The question of the day has been WHY? Why would Berger risk all? Who is he protecting? What leverage does someone have to do such a stupid, stupid thing...so obvious and blatant?
And this is where the timing comes in. If you were involved,, knew of the investigation, Berger was cooperating and the story could grow very, very long legs if the press had a slow week, what would you do?
Leak the story right before the release of the 9/11 report which just happens to be prior to the convention and pray to God the other events knock it out of the spotlight until our short attention span turns to another issue.
A strong possibility may be the source of the leak may lead to the answers of the questions we have been asking.
bttt
As I've alluded to before, I am very impressed by your summary. One item that I would like you to add, when you get a chance to update it:
There are many, many people who have had "Confidential" or "Secret" clearances, or even marginal "Top Secret" access. Those people are likely to under a delusion that this "Code Word" - Highest sensitivity - material is handled in a similar manner. Nothing could be further from the truth.
This stuff is handled with far more care than the lower clearance material, and even the archivists (or investigators of criminal behavior with respect to it) are under severe restrictions when they have to handle it in any way because they do not have the clearances and "need-to-know" to be allowed to view it.
There is no way - I mean NO WAY - for this material to be inadvertently carried off and subsequently lost or disposed of.
.
bump
A most enlightening post. Michael Savage made mention of the "Code Word Access" and how secrete that level is. This Berger thing simply does not pass the smell test in any shape or form...Berger committed a crime and I suspect he did not do this for himself – shades of Ron Brown.
I know that even "honest mistakes" where procedures were improperly followed, but which resulted in no actual compromise of the data results in severe punishment for people in the military: Reduction of rank, loss of multiple months pay, and confinement to quarters - in addition to possible revokation of security clearances.
That's just for mishandling or misrecording. Anything even remotely like what is described would result in jail-time.