State Dept. Memo Warning Employees Against Leaking Is Immediately Leaked
So-called "low-life leakers" certainly have a sense of irony
The leaks just keep on coming.
While President Donald Trump has repeatedly expressed frustration over the unsanctioned release of internal documents and information, the Washington Post reported Friday morning on the existence of a State Department memo specifically warning agency employees against unauthorized leaks.
How did the paper know about the memo? Because it was leaked, of course.
As the Post's Josh Rogin reports:
The State Department legal office prepared a four-page memo for Secretary of State Rex Tillerson warning of the dangers of leaking by State Department employees. It promptly leaked, to me. That's only the latest sign that the relationship between the Trump administration political appointees and the State Department professional workforce is still very much a work in progress.
The Feb. 20 memo by State Department acting legal adviser Richard Visek to Tillerson is entitled "SBU: Protecting Privileged Information." The SBU stands for Sensitive But Unclassified, a designation used on documents that are not technically secret but also not supposed to be shared. The memo itself is marked SBU and begins with detailed explanation of how and when Tillerson has the privilege of protecting certain types of information from public disclosure, such as anything that has to do with internal State Department deliberations.
It's an ironic twist, of course, that comes as the president continues to grapple with many agency employees skeptical of his administration's approach to governing and offers further evidence that Trump will continue to face internal dissent.
Following the resignation earlier this month of national security advisor Michael Flynn--a departure prompted by leaked information that showed Flynn had lied to or misled Vice President Mike Pence over conversations with a high-level Russian official--Trump argued the "real story" was not Flynn's behavior, but the leaks that exposed them. And just last week, as Common Dreams also reported, Trump vowed to root out those who would give unauthorized information to the press or public, calling them "low-life leakers."
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. In a few short weeks, US voters will have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. Our Fall Campaign is underway, and we need your help. To power our newsroom through the rest of the year, we need to raise $125,000 by midnight on October 31. So if you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
The leaks just keep on coming.
While President Donald Trump has repeatedly expressed frustration over the unsanctioned release of internal documents and information, the Washington Post reported Friday morning on the existence of a State Department memo specifically warning agency employees against unauthorized leaks.
How did the paper know about the memo? Because it was leaked, of course.
As the Post's Josh Rogin reports:
The State Department legal office prepared a four-page memo for Secretary of State Rex Tillerson warning of the dangers of leaking by State Department employees. It promptly leaked, to me. That's only the latest sign that the relationship between the Trump administration political appointees and the State Department professional workforce is still very much a work in progress.
The Feb. 20 memo by State Department acting legal adviser Richard Visek to Tillerson is entitled "SBU: Protecting Privileged Information." The SBU stands for Sensitive But Unclassified, a designation used on documents that are not technically secret but also not supposed to be shared. The memo itself is marked SBU and begins with detailed explanation of how and when Tillerson has the privilege of protecting certain types of information from public disclosure, such as anything that has to do with internal State Department deliberations.
It's an ironic twist, of course, that comes as the president continues to grapple with many agency employees skeptical of his administration's approach to governing and offers further evidence that Trump will continue to face internal dissent.
Following the resignation earlier this month of national security advisor Michael Flynn--a departure prompted by leaked information that showed Flynn had lied to or misled Vice President Mike Pence over conversations with a high-level Russian official--Trump argued the "real story" was not Flynn's behavior, but the leaks that exposed them. And just last week, as Common Dreams also reported, Trump vowed to root out those who would give unauthorized information to the press or public, calling them "low-life leakers."
The leaks just keep on coming.
While President Donald Trump has repeatedly expressed frustration over the unsanctioned release of internal documents and information, the Washington Post reported Friday morning on the existence of a State Department memo specifically warning agency employees against unauthorized leaks.
How did the paper know about the memo? Because it was leaked, of course.
As the Post's Josh Rogin reports:
The State Department legal office prepared a four-page memo for Secretary of State Rex Tillerson warning of the dangers of leaking by State Department employees. It promptly leaked, to me. That's only the latest sign that the relationship between the Trump administration political appointees and the State Department professional workforce is still very much a work in progress.
The Feb. 20 memo by State Department acting legal adviser Richard Visek to Tillerson is entitled "SBU: Protecting Privileged Information." The SBU stands for Sensitive But Unclassified, a designation used on documents that are not technically secret but also not supposed to be shared. The memo itself is marked SBU and begins with detailed explanation of how and when Tillerson has the privilege of protecting certain types of information from public disclosure, such as anything that has to do with internal State Department deliberations.
It's an ironic twist, of course, that comes as the president continues to grapple with many agency employees skeptical of his administration's approach to governing and offers further evidence that Trump will continue to face internal dissent.
Following the resignation earlier this month of national security advisor Michael Flynn--a departure prompted by leaked information that showed Flynn had lied to or misled Vice President Mike Pence over conversations with a high-level Russian official--Trump argued the "real story" was not Flynn's behavior, but the leaks that exposed them. And just last week, as Common Dreams also reported, Trump vowed to root out those who would give unauthorized information to the press or public, calling them "low-life leakers."