Loose Lips? No Clearance: Bill Introduced to Revoke Clearances for Leaks
Posted by Lindy Kyzer on 18 Jul 2012 at 09:44 am | Tagged as: Cleared News
Congress is adding muscle to its requests for harsh penalties against those accused of leaking classified information.
Last week Senator Richard Burr (R-N.C.) introduced the Deterring Public Disclosure of Covert Actions Act of 2012, which will revoke the security clearances of individuals who disclose covert actions. Burr emphasized that no such bill should need to be issued, but recent concerns about a dramatic rise in sensitive information being disclosed make such legislation necessary.
“There has been no shortage of news reports lately regarding covert and classified actions,” Senator Burr said. “Such reckless disclosure of top-secret information compromises our national security, jeopardizes the work of our intelligence officers and overseas partners, and risks innocent lives.”
The law would apply to officers, contractors and government employees and Burr emphasized in his statement that no one would lose their clearance without due process, and a determination that classified information had actually been leaked.
The bill comes in follow-up to an announcement by the Director of National Intelligence that new polygraph procedures would ask specifically about whether an individual has ever disclosed protected information. Polygraph procedures are now in the spotlight, following a McClatchy News Service report on abuses in the polygraph screening process. Unless carefully implemented, new polygraph screening methods along with harsher and more immediate penalties for those found revealing secrets could make for simpler responses to that question “how was your day?” – even if it’s your spouse asking.
Yet another knee-jerk reaction. Putting words on paper does nothing. Leave it to Congress to design another bill/law. I guess the other dozen we have are no good anymore.
Amen BW, A-freakin-men.
While were accounting for every dollar and cutting, cutting, cutting, Congress does nothing but waste. What did I hear the other day that the House has now voted 33 times to repeal the ACA at a cost of 50 million?
Give me a break.
“The bill comes in follow-up to an announcement by the Director of National Intelligence that new polygraph procedures would ask specifically about whether an individual has ever disclosed protected information”
Wow!!!!! These guys are sharp–only a genius would have come-up with that question. Who da thunk? Let’s see, the U.S. has been dealing in classified info since…….wait……..IT’S INCEPTION…….and we just now thought of this??????????
Inception? Wasn’t that some wack movie about sleep apnea or something, starring that one guy from that movie where the boat sank?
Not sure–I’ve been living inside my dreams for so long, haven’t heard of any new movies lately.
In my dreams, my subjects fill out their paperwork correctly, sources return phone calls within the hour, neighbors are always home and there is never traffic.
It’s paradise, I tell you, paradise.
In my dreams, a subject who’s been out of town decides to return my call at 9AM on a Sunday while I’m still in bed. Luckily for me, that dre came true today.
Another day, another song and dance to crack down on the tiny regular people because they’re obviously leaking the secrets…no way it could be the big, powerful, all-knowing gods at the top…