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I am not making direct comparisons here between Bush2’s problems with
secrecy (on numerous topics, and in general) and the coincidence of the PBS
documentary on Watergate airing tonight, Wednesday, July 30, 2003, but it is
very much a d�j� vu experience to read this, forwarded to me by an alert
FWer. So in the public interest,
I’m giving this wider broadcast. -
KWC CLASSIFICATION POLICY AND THE
MISSING 28 PAGES The dispute over the Bush
Administration's refusal to declassify a 28 page section of the congressional
joint inquiry report on the September 11 terrorist attacks has elevated
classification policy to front page news. Sen. Bob Graham (D-FL) directly
challenged the legitimacy of the continued classification. "This obsession with excessive
secrecy is deeply troubling," he said July 24:
http://www.fas.org/irp/congress/2003_cr/s072403.html Some may devalue such comments
because Sen. Graham is a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination,
and a critic of President Bush.
But the same cannot be said of Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL), who is a
Republican supporter of the President and a "hawk" on protecting
classified information. Yet it was
Shelby who said on NBC Meet the Press and elsewhere that "My judgment is
95 percent of that information could be declassified, become uncensored so the
American people would know." "Judgment" may be the
key word here. What the dispute
over the missing 28 pages illustrates with exceptional clarity is that
classification is a subjective process.
Different individuals with comparable expertise and commitment to
national security will sometimes assess the sensitivity of particular
information in different, even opposing ways. Because it is subjective, the classification process is
susceptible to bias, poor judgment or error. While this is obvious enough, it
is also hard to admit. Asked about Sen. Shelby's contrasting view on July 29,
President Bush simply ignored the question. Grilled at a White House press briefing, spokesman Scott
McClellan could only repeat the Administration position over and over. See:
http://www.fas.org/irp/news/2003/07/wh072903b.html If the classification process is
susceptible to error, then what is needed, and what is lacking, is an effective
error correction mechanism. Ironically, the congressional
joint inquiry into 9/11 specifically called for "amendments to the
Executive Orders, policies and procedures that govern the national security
classification of intelligence information, in an effort to expand access to relevant
information..." (recommendation 15). But the joint inquiry assigned
this crucial task to the President! Since it is unrealistic to ask a
President, especially this President, to limit his own authority to classify,
this recommendation is a futile gesture. Sen. Bob Graham said he would ask the Senate Intelligence Committee exercise
its own authority to disclose portions of the 28 classified pages, pursuant to
a Senate procedure that has never before been utilized. This would precipitate an extraordinary
(and thrilling) confrontation between the executive and legislative branches
over classification policy. See that procedure in Section 8(a) of the Rules of the Select Committee on Intelligence
here:
http://www.fas.org/irp/congress/2003_cr/s022503.html#8 The classified 28 pages are
understood to refer to Saudi Arabia and the possible role of Saudi officials in
aiding the 9/11 hijackers. "We cannot name this
country," said comedian Bill Maher, "but it is, we can assume, a
veritable *Mecca* of terrorist activity." "We have nothing to
hide," said Saudi foreign minister Prince Saud al-Faisal after meeting
with President Bush. "And we
do not seek nor do we need to be shielded. We believe that releasing the missing 28 pages will allow us
to respond to any allegations in a clear and credible manner; and remove any
doubts about the Kingdom's true role in the war against terrorism and its
commitment to fight it." See: http://www.fas.org/irp/news/2003/07/sa072903.html |
