Prosecution of ex-NSA official Thomas Drake was ‘ill-considered,’ former agency spokesman says

[EFerrari]

A former Justice Department spokesman has acknowledged that the prosecution of former National Security Agency official Thomas Drake was “ill-considered.”

In an exchange with Politico correspondent Josh Gerstein about the department’s prosecutions of alleged leakers, former Department of Justice Director of Public Affairs Matt Miller on Saturday said the Drake case, which ended last year in a misdemeanor plea deal, was unlike other cases because “Drake did seem to be trying to expose actual government waste. I think the outcome of the case probably shows that it was an ill-considered choice for prosecution.”

The plea deal was a major embarrassment for the department, which had showcased Drake’s 2010 indictment as a signal to would-be leakers.

Even after the case blew up, Miller continued to defend the prosecution. “It’s an important principle that people who have access to classified information follow the law and the agreements they have signed to protect that information,” he was quoted as saying in The New York Times. He also said, “The indictment was brought on the merits, and nothing else.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/checkpoint-washington/post/prosecution-of-ex-nsa-official-thomas-drake-was-ill-considered-former-agency-spokesman-acknowledges/2012/03/12/gIQAXE6L7R_blog.html

[atreides1]

1. Really

Even after the case blew up, Miller continued to defend the prosecution. “It’s an important principle that people who have access to classified information follow the law and the agreements they have signed to protect that information,”

Then why don't they go after members of congress who do the same damn thing?

[saras]

2. Because they're lying. Making these mouth noises supports their cause in the moment. That's all.

What's an important principle is that you damned well obey the powers that be and support their agenda, whether what they order is legal or illegal.

[midnight]

3. Drake said 1.2 billion NSA experimental program Trailblazer to comb through peoples data didn't work

"Drake was one of several sources for a Baltimore Sun article about a $1.2 billion NSA experimental program called Trailblazer to comb through electronic communications for national security threats. Drake alleged that the program did not work, violated Americans’ privacy rights, and that was inferior to a rival program called Thin Thread."


So by protecting the tax payer from being frauded he is prosecuted?