Posted on 07/11/2005 7:07:57 AM PDT by Liz
Sandy Berger answers questions in the White House briefing room in this Thursday, March 25, 1999 file photo. Former national security adviser Sandy Berger will plead guilty to taking classified material from the National Archives, a misdemeanor, the Justice Department said Thursday. Berger is expected to appear in federal court in Washington on Friday, said Justice spokesman Bryan Sierra. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds, File)
Former Ntl Security Advisor Pleads Guilty to Taking Classified Materials
WASHINGTON Apr 1, 2005 — Former national security adviser Sandy Berger, who once had unfettered access to the government's most sensitive secrets, pleaded guilty Friday to sneaking classified documents out of the National Archives, then using scissors to cut up some of them.
Rather than the "honest mistake" he described last summer, Berger acknowledged to U.S. Magistrate Deborah Robinson that he intentionally took and deliberately destroyed three copies of the same document dealing with terror threats during the 2000 millennium celebration. He then lied about it to Archives staff when they told him documents were missing.
"Guilty, your honor," Berger responded Friday when asked how he pleaded.
Magistrate Deborah Robinson did not ask Berger why he cut up the materials and threw them away at the Washington office of his Stonebridge International consulting firm. Berger, accompanied by his wife, Susan, did not offer an explanation when he addressed reporters outside the federal courthouse following the hearing.
"It was a mistake and it was wrong," he said, refusing to answer questions.
Noel Hillman, chief of the Justice Department's public integrity section, would not discuss Berger's motivation, but said the former national security adviser understood the rules governing the handling of classified materials. Berger only had copies of documents; all of the originals remain in the government's possession, Hillman said.
The charge of unauthorized removal and retention of classified material is a misdemeanor that carries a maximum sentence of a year in prison and up to a $100,000 fine.
However, under a plea agreement that still must be approved by Robinson, Berger would serve no jail time but pay a $10,000 fine, surrender his security clearance for three years and cooperate with investigators. Security clearance allows access to classified government materials.
Sentencing was set for July 8.
The court appearance was the culmination of a bizarre episode in which Berger, who once had access to the government's most sensitive intelligence, was accused of sneaking documents out of the Archives, which houses the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence and other cherished and top-secret documents.
The Bush administration disclosed the investigation in July, just days before the Sept. 11 commission issued its final report. Democrats claimed the White House was using Berger to deflect attention from the harsh findings, with their potential for damaging President Bush's re-election prospects.
After news of the probe surfaced, Berger acknowledged he left the National Archives on two occasions in 2003 with copies of documents about the government's anti-terror efforts and notes that he took on those documents.
He said he was reviewing the materials to help determine which Clinton administration documents to provide to the commission investigating the Sept. 11 attacks. He called the episode "an honest mistake" and denied criminal wrongdoing.
Berger and his lawyer, Lanny Breuer, have said that Berger knowingly removed the handwritten notes by placing them in his jacket and pants and inadvertently took copies of actual classified documents in a leather portfolio.
He returned two copies of a sensitive after-action report on the Clinton administration's handling of al-Qaida terror threats during the December 1999 millennium celebration.
The Associated Press first reported in July that the Justice Department was investigating Berger. The disclosure prompted Berger to step down as an adviser to the campaign of Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry.
Clinton was among the Democrats who questioned the timing of the disclosure of the Berger probe three days before the release of the Sept. 11 report. Leaders of the Sept. 11 commission said they were able to get every key document needed to complete their report.
Copyright 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Please don't let her get any closer to the White House than Whitehaven Drive.
Playing the tape of the NY Police and Firefighters booing her should help remind New Yorkers.
he should be thrown in jail for 2-3 years.
xlnt post
I'm with you on that one!
>>> What a farce!
We will see, now won't we?
Deafening silence of the MSM.
Where is the FNC story?
Public Integrity passed me off to Public Affairs.
Public Affairs only handles "media calls." So they passed me to the criminal division, which then put me back into the Public Affairs voicemail.
Amazing.
Well don't forget it is the Bush administration that cut the deal with Sandy Burglar. Bush, through his attorney general, controls the justice department.
THIS DOES HAPPEN WITHOUT BUSH'S APPROVAL.
Start with the "A's" in the Yellow Pages...
This guy needs to go to the slammer for 10-20, minimum. He frigging stole national security documents during wartime to cover something up!!!!!! Where is the media outrage over this?
Instead, they're all wetting themselves over Karl Rove.
Yeah, and my critter, TOM DAVIS, Chair of the Governmental Affairs Committee, was going to hold hearings to get to the bottom of the theft. I'm still waiting for those hearings.
Someone got the "fix" in.
Liz seems Clinton got real chummy with Dad Bush after this verdict. Any connection there?? The Elites protect each other..or else the masses would see they are not Greek Gods but mortal men and women..(jamie gurlick comes also to mind). Our republic stands above any one Leader..until the SCOTUS totally destroys the founding documents then its down hill to tyranny
The man intentionally stole and destroyed Top Secret documents - documents intended for the 9/11 committee. He was deliberately trying to hide the truth about a matter of the most serious national importance. He should get the max.
By the way, he did this with the collusion of Clinton's lawyer.
Ping
This is a job for the internet. It's our responsibility to keep this story in the public eye, and try to discover what Berger was doing and why. Neither the media nor the justice system will do anything about it.
Lose his security clearance for three years? If any of us had done this, we'd never get a security clearance in our lives. The Washington political establishment certainly takes care of their own.
FYI
The media will ignore this, that goes without saying. But, the RNC could do more to get this noticed. If things were turned around, the democrat strategy would be to have someone like Kennedy or Pelosi make some wild exagerated statements and force the press to cover it.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.