Yesterday’s big campaign news, at least according to the Washington Post www.washingtonpost.com/...
The State Department acknowledged for the first time Friday that “top secret” information has been found in emails that passed through the private email server Hillary Clinton used while leading the agency, elevating the issue in the presidential campaign three days before the hotly contested Iowa caucuses.
and another obscure outlet called the New York Times. www.nytimes.com/...®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news&_r=0
The top secret emails lent credence to criticism by Mrs. Clinton’s rivals in the presidential race of her handling of classified information while she was secretary of state from 2009 to 2013. It is against the law for officials to discuss classified information on unclassified networks used for routine business or on private servers, and the F.B.I. is looking into whether such information was mishandled.
Mr. McCullough (Obama IC IG) wrote that “several dozen emails” contained classified information, including some now determined to contain information at the “top secret/S.A.P.” level. That designation refers to “special access programs,” which are among the government’s most closely guarded secrets.
At some point, reality is going to sink in among Democrats in general and Hillary supporters in particular: she’s in trouble. If you’re looking at a total count, it looks like the current total number of classified emails found so far on Hillary’s unclassified email server is 1,604. The breakdown seems to be about 22-24 TOP SECRET (up to SCI SAP), 11-14 SECRET, and the rest all CONFIDENTIAL. Of the CONFIDENTIAL emails, the bulk seem to be in a category called FGI (Foreign Government Information). When I wrote my first diary predicting disaster for HRC based on the emails, the total was 63, with 2-4 at the TS level. 63. www.dailykos.com/… The number is now 1,604. Is this the new standard for compliance to security regulations? The first 1604 don’t count against you, as long as no more than 24 are TOP SECRET? Hillary and staff are making a mockery of security regulations, and the concept that the law applies equally to all. For you numbers doubters, here’s the count, and more are coming: www.politico.com/...
State was ordered by a federal judge to complete its public release of Clinton's emails by Friday, but said last week it will not be able to meet that deadline. Just over 900 emails totaling 1,670 pages were released on the department's website on Friday evening, leaving more than 7,000 pages still in the review process.
The new releases and the "top secret" batch brought the number of emails in Clinton's account deemed classified to more than 1,600. In the new release, 11 more emails were designated as "secret," which is the middle tier of classification, while 231 were labeled at the lowest tier, "confidential."
This site forbids CT, so be aware this announcement did not come from the comical and inept Benghazi Committee. This is the Obama DoJ, the Obama FBI, the Obama DoS, the Obama IC IG, the Obama CIA, and the Obama NGA collectively claiming that 1600+ classified emails have been found. Make the case that it’s an Obama conspiracy against Hillary at your own peril.
People are probably going to argue, haplessly, that Hillary received virtually all of these, and didn’t send. I dealt with this in my first diary, so I’ll quote it here, extensively, but the basic rejoinder is...nonsense. As an Originating Classification Authority (OCA) due to her position as SoS, she was required to know better. Here’s my earlier diary:
“Hillary, even if she just received them, should have been able to recognize them. All holders of clearances, and especially TS, receive training in handling and recognizing classified material, but Hillary was both specially charged by President Obama, and specially trained, to recognize classified material, even when unmarked.
Link is to BHO Executive Order designating 21 senior officials as having Originating Classification Authority. As Secretary of State, Hillary was one of them. en.wikisource.org/...
As background, everyone with a clearance is taught they have derivative authority to recognize and mark classified material—if it looks like something else they have known to be classified, it must also be classified. If you sit down and write a report, or read an email in your unclassified inbox, and you know it is similar to other reports that are classified—you must classify it. Originating Authorities like the Sec Def and Sec State have special responsibilities and special training—from the linked President Obama EO 13526:
All original classification authorities must receive training in proper classification (including the avoidance of over-classification) and declassification as provided in this order and its implementing directives at least once a calendar year. Such training must include instruction on the proper safeguarding of classified information and on the sanctions in section 5.5 of this order that may be brought against an individual who fails to classify information properly or protect classified information from unauthorized disclosure. Original classification authorities who do not receive such mandatory training at least once within a calendar year shall have their classification authority suspended by the agency head or the senior agency official designated under section 5.4(d) of this order until such training has taken place.
This destroys the arguments that claim “How could poor Hillary know if she had received unmarked emails?”. OCA is how she was trained to know. And here’s more from former Admiral and current DoS spokesman John Kirby:
MR KIRBY: Well, yes and no. Yes, we’re always concerned about the proper security and safeguarding of sensitive and classified information. But I – but essentially, back to your loophole question, no, there’s no – the responsibilities of a federal employee – and I come from 30 years in the Navy and, I mean, this is something that’s drummed into you from the moment you raise your right hand. The responsibilities of a federal employee to protect sensitive information, whether it’s classified or not, is absolute. And if – you may not have – you may not be the sender, you may not be the originator, but if you’re a recipient of it and you know you are – and sometimes it’s hard to know. In the very fast-paced, dynamic world that we’re living in, whether it’s from a military security perspective or diplomacy, sometimes it’s hard to know at the moment you’re in. But if you do know or you have a reason to suspect, “Boy, I just got an email that’s got some sensitive information in here,” there are steps in place, there’s procedures – we’re all trained on them – on how to deal with that. You alert the IT folks, you alert the security folks, you do what you have to do. Sometimes it’s easy and sometimes it’s not so easy to know where that line is. But there are procedures in place regardless of where on the unclassified side that information resides and/or was transmitted, whether it’s a private Gmail account or my State.gov. There’s procedures and rules and they have not changed. Like I said, I’ve been at this now for three decades and I can tell you they’re the same. It’s the one thing that’s absolutely certain as you take on a job in the federal government.”
Two of the aides most likely to receive indictments still work for her—they are the ones who sent many of these unmarked and illegal emails. Hillary has made no move to fire or discipline them—apparently she doesn’t care, and doesn't feel these kinds of violations would matter in a Hillary administration. If Hillary’s only punishment is to lose her security clearance: can she function as president without access to classified information? I suppose—she made her decision to vote for AUMF without entering the SCIF to read the classified annexes about Iraqi WMD programs, despite the urging of many of her fellow Dems.
I’ve spent most of my adult life with a security clearance. Even if Hillary were my dream candidate, and she’s definitely not, I would find the mishandling of over 1600 classified documents disqualifying. I believe the American people will react the same way, even if it’s just her aides who get indicted, and the boss walks away legally scot free. And yes, I will put my money, and my DK membership, where my cursor is. Pick a charity and the bet is whether or not Hillary and/or at least one top aide will be indicted in the next 90 days over this issue. Or, your DK membership against mine. If they all walk away clean, I write a GBCW (after 10 years here), and you're rid of me. I’m that confident. Are you? And if not, who’s your backup candidate? Is everyone going to Bernie or will Biden or Kerry or someone else jump in?