The Obama Administration's Persecution of a Free Press

Update, 21 May, 2013:  The full text of James Rosen's article also included a statement to the effect that his story came from "...sources inside North Korea".  I have been unable to locate a full text of the article so I am getting this third hand.  I will admit that adding that statement makes the leak more interesting to the DOJ but still believe that this Whitehouse has engaged in activities to deliberately hide operational data from the press by classifying it.  We still need a better explanation from the DOJ and the Whitehouse over this serious breach of Rosen's First Amendment rights. 

In a post last week,  I discussed the IRS scandal, Benghazi, and the Department of Justice (DOJ) seizures of AP Phone records.  Today I read of DOJ activities with respect to James Rosen, a Fox News reporter in a Guardian article.  The DOJ apparently not only looked at his phone records, they got a warrant to view his private emails and have listed him as an unindicted co-conspirator in the leak of  the information  that North Korea would probably respond to sanctions with more nuclear tests.  Now this story which could have been surmised by anyone who has followed the news with respect to North Korea for a few years is the result of the government classifying the obvious.


The Guardian article also quotes James Goodale, former general counsel for the New York Times, as saying that the Obama administration has classified some 7 million documents in a single year.  Looking at the 100 emails sent back and forth on the Benghazi talking points, you will see that much of that was also classified although there is insufficient reason for doing so.  If it is classified, however, discussion or disclosure could get you thrown in jail.  The emails were declassified, however, so you can read them and laugh at the incompetence of the team that edited the talking points without fear of jail time.

So, let's count the mismanagement under this administration that we know of:

1. We have the Administration's handling of the Benghazi attacks and the questionable CIA assessment that the event was a "spontaneous reaction to events in Egypt".  Really, if that is the best they could do after studying the event for 3 days, we need a Reduction of Force at the agency.  Perhaps we need to see the emails between the administration and the CIA before the talking points were generated.  If collusion or pressure by someone in the west wing to subvert the message occurred, it could be a very serious charge.
2. We have the IRS targeting of conservative public issue groups and vindictive audits of people who complained.
3. We have the promotion of the IRS manager responsible for the targeting of the conservative groups.
4. There are reports of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius soliciting funding from private industries in the health field because Congress won't fund her activities.  
5. There are reports of the DOJ's seizure of Associated Press phone records.
6. And today we learn that the DOJ tracked a reporter's comings and goings, read his personal emails, and has alleged that he broke the law and endangered national security by reporting what was obvious to any knowledgeable observer. 

Through it all, Mr. Obama is blissfully unaware of any misconduct by the DOJ, Eric Holder in particular, the IRS, his staffers, the State Department, or the CIA.  Frankly, he is either unaware by choice or by incompetence.  I don't believe him to be incompetent so perhaps he has encouraged his staffers to keep him in the dark, especially if there are illegal actions being taken.