posted July 10, 2006 11:19 AM            

Rep. Pete Hoekstra, a Michigan Republican who chairs the House Intelligence Committee, said on Fox News Sunday he had written a four-page to President George W. Bush in May warning him that the failure to disclose the intelligence activities to Congress may be a violation of the law.

In doing so, he confirmed a story that first ran in Sunday editions of the New York Times.

"I take it very, very seriously otherwise I would not have written the letter to the president," Hoekstra said.

"This is actually a case where the whistle-blower process was working appropriately and people within the intelligence community brought to my attention some programs that they believed we had not been briefed on. They were right," said Hoekstra, a close ally of Bush.

"We asked by code name about some of these programs. We have now been briefed on those programs but I wanted to reinforce to the president and to the executive branch and the intelligence community how important by law is the requirement that they keep the legislative branch informed of what they are doing," Hoekstra said.

The White House declined to comment directly on the allegations in Hoekstra's letter. "We will continue to work closely with the chairman and other congressional leaders on important national security issues," said Alex Conant, a White House spokesman.

Critics have charged that the Bush administration has a penchant for secrecy and has pushed its legal powers to the limit and possibly beyond in pursuing its "war on terror." But Hoekstra's complaint was particularly significant since it came from a strong supporter of the administration's tactics.

Hoekstra complained in his letter to Bush that the U.S. Congress "simply should not have to play 'Twenty Questions' to get the information that it deserves under our Constitution."

In the letter and the interview, Hoekstra did not provide details about the programs, which presumably remain secret.

Hoekstra had been briefed about both the National Security Agency's domestic surveillance program and the Treasury Department's tracking of international banking transactions, both of which were leaked to the media.

He said he did not expect to be briefed about everything intelligence agencies were doing but at least one of the secret activities was a major program which Congress definitely should have been informed about.

In the letter, Hoekstra said the lack of disclosure possibly constituted a "breach of responsibility by the administration, a violation of the law, and, just as importantly, a direct affront to me and the members of this committee who have so ardently supported efforts to collect information on our enemies."

posted July 10, 2006 12:06 PM            

Let's see, there is "leaky Leahy", a Senator who leaked a CIA operation to the press..deliberately...because he disagreed with the operation. That got a CIA asset stuffed in a Soviet oven at a crematorium and reduced to ashes while he was still alive.

Then, there were Senators Rockefeller and "leaky Leahy" who disclosed the existence of a super secret spy satellite program...to the press again, because they disagreed with the program.

That's two and there are more. There are Senate and House staffers who regularly spill the beans to the press on secret programs and operations. There are CIA officials and officers..some current and some fired or retired who regularly disclose top secret programs to the press.

All in all, the Congress needs to begin the process of running down leakers..who are in reality traitors when they aid the enemy by disclosing what the US is doing to combat terrorism or combat foreign intelligence services and force them to give up their committee seats in Congress.

Perhaps then, the Executive Branch could have some confidence that what they tell Congress in top secret briefings will stay where it belongs.

If this continues, I would expect the President, Vice President, Rumsfeld, et al., to start making public statements about who in the Congress is leaking and has leaked the existence of top secret security programs to the press and others.

posted July 10, 2006 08:56 PM              

Leaky Leahy

Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT). The name is derived from Leahy's intentional leaking of classified material during his tenure on the intelligence committee. See also “Senator Depends”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jargon_of_The_Rush_Limbaugh_Show

from rushlimbaugh.com
http://mfile.akamai.com/5020/wma/rushlimb.download.akamai.com/5020/clips/06/05/051906_3_leahy.asx

posted July 10, 2006 09:25 PM            

I got Leaky Leahy from NewsMax...from lots of different articles. I have or had no idea who coined the phrase..."Leaky Leahy".

Friday, May 19, 2006 12:49 a.m. EDT
Pat "Leaky" Leahy Aided NSA Phone Taps
http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2006/5/19/125324.shtml