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State Department: "No, No, No, No, No, No." (Yes)
March 21, 2008 7:01 AM
Your State Department at work!
HERE'S our dot-com look at the State Department employees canned for improperly looking in Sen. Barack Obama's personal passport files.
Until I listened to the State Department's hastily-arranged conference call last night on this embarrassment, I had forgotten how obfuscatory State Department language is.
Here's the transcript where Undersecretary of State Pat Kennedy and State Department spokesman Sean McCormick dance around the fact that senior management at the State Department didn't find out about these breaches until a reporter called McCormick to ask about them.
MIKE ISIKOFF, NEWSWEEK: Mr. Kennedy, you said you just learned about this today...When did the State Department first learn about it?...
MCCORMACK: Yeah, what I said was senior management of the Department found out about it today.
UNDER SECRETARY KENNEDY: Right. First of all, these were employees -- all of these involved employees of contractors rather than U.S. Government employees, and it -- I will fully acknowledge that this information should have been passed up the line. It was dealt with at the office level where the incidents occurred by the office-level supervisors, who took immediate steps when they saw this. As Sean mentioned earlier, we have a very, very sophisticated computer tracking system that looks out for and looks out over the use of the computer, and when it sees anything that is potentially inappropriate, the computer calls it to the attention of the working-level supervisor. The system worked; it was called to their attention. They acted and -- but I will admit, they failed to pass the information up the chain to a sufficiently high level.
ISIKOFF: Which offices didn't pass the information up the line?
KENNEDY: At three working-level offices within the passport office.
ISIKOFF: Why were you first told today?
MCCORMACK: I was -- I first found out about this incident from a reporter who had a question who called me -- who emailed me with a question…
GLENN KESSLER, WASHINGTON POST: I missed part of this call, because I got kind of a late email. So, I just want to clarify a few things. First of all, is it correct, Sean, the way that the State Department found out about this whole thing was because you got a call from a reporter?
MCCORMACK: No, no, no, no, no, no. First of all, Glenn, there’s a transcript. So you can go back and check the transcript once it’s issued.
KESSLER: Okay, but I -- it sounded like –
MCCORMACK: Senior management of the Department first became aware of this today.
KESSLER: Became aware, and how did they become aware of it?
MCCORMACK: And I first became aware of it when I received an inquiry from a reporter....
KESSLER: Okay, and how did Pat become aware of it?
MCCORMACK: What’s that?
KESSLER: How did Pat become aware of it today?
MCCORMACK: Pat? I talked to Pat.
KESSLER: So, in other words, the way senior management found out about this was because a reporter called you, not because someone thought to “send this information up the line.” Is that correct?
MCCORMACK: And as Pat -- and you can check your transcript, Glenn -- as Pat just said, that information should have been passed up the line. You are absolutely right.
Yeesh.
- jpt
March 21, 2008 | Permalink | Share | User Comments (69)
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Obama who? Before this campagn I never heard of him what did he do when he was in the senate, I guess not much since we never heard of him, so what does he know about running this country. Someone made a comment about Hillary running with the big boys, well in my opinion she can and does run with the big boys and she will be the one to do a great job in running this country.
Posted by: cathy | Mar 24, 2008 12:51:22 PM
To all of you,that act like Obama was the only one's passport was breached,quit acting so darn silly,obama is a man,quit treating him like a darn child,if he needed your help,he would ask for it.You're not that in love with obama.Let him be a man and handle his own business.I hate when people puts up a darn front like they really care.A darn bunch of fakes that's all you are,wanting to stay in other folks business.Handle your own business and allow Obama too breathe..
Dang,"Get a life"
Makes me mad as hell.
Posted by: scruggs_22 | Mar 22, 2008 6:09:09 PM
''If I open your mail in the morning post and then give it to you with an open envelope'',would you be happy? I just cant believe that some people think Obama souldnt be upset by this incident unless he got something to hide!There is nothing to hide my friend, as its a general things to understand that personel details should keep personel,and its a right to everyone to raise the question if it doesnt.
Posted by: John walker | Mar 21, 2008 9:27:35 PM
Quote: "U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says she has apologized to Senator Barack Obama after government contract workers accessed his passport file without authorization." That bucket won't hold water. If they were able to access it, they had the proper authorization.
Posted by: Jean Chevreille | Mar 21, 2008 1:39:23 PM
Has anybody noticed that Clinton's passport info was accessed improperly way back in 2007, according to the State Department?? Where are the allegations that Obama had something to do with that?? Seems even more likely, since the Obama campaign has a great interest in discrediting Clinton's experience with foreign leaders, and Obama has no experience to discredit. Both ideas seem foolish, and reflect the paranoia of most conspiracy theories, and the gullibility of those who buy into such improbabilities.
Posted by: AlphaOverdawg | Mar 21, 2008 1:34:30 PM
That three employees of the State Department queried Senator Obama's records means very little in the absense of what else they queried on those days. Were they just curious, or were they focussing on a particular individual? Federal employees are not selected based on their curiosity factor. They may be fired because of it, but it's not a criteria for hireing. I'm not saying the particular individuals shouldn't be fired. I don't have enough information to weigh in either way. However, to fire them because they queried a candidate may be premature. Any of us who use the internet know we often end up on sites we had no intention of visiting. One should at least ask whether their query was an aberation, or part of a pattern.
Posted by: Jean Chevreille | Mar 21, 2008 12:52:50 PM
300 FBI files of Repulicans stolen by the White House during Clinton I. Info from Henry Hyde's file leaked before a vote. Where were the privacy experts then?
Posted by: Jeff | Mar 21, 2008 12:27:05 PM
A legal misdemeanor elevated by the media as major incident for what purpose we wonder?
What is the big deal, it's only a passport,additionally every one is probing in our own records without our knowledge... Credit, insurance, health etc etc.
Why the sensitivity by the Obama camp? Are there embarrassing revelations buried in those passport applications and travel itineraries that it does not want reveal to the general public?
Posted by: J. Roy | Mar 21, 2008 12:10:44 PM
Buncha amateurs.
Posted by: Tungsten | Mar 21, 2008 11:22:08 AM
It sounds like this is part of the kitchen sink arrangement, shame on you Hillary, politice is not do-or-die.
Posted by: davey | Mar 21, 2008 11:15:07 AM
Why don't we just wait and see.. I am sure there will be all kinds of speculating..um I mean reporting done on this over the next few days... either way it will sure be interesting- American politics at its finest!
Posted by: ss | Mar 21, 2008 11:05:29 AM
So We the People Do Need Freedom ff the Press after all. If it wasn't for a reporter...
Question: What Other wrong doings are company contractors doing at hte state department that has Not been brought out to the Light Of Day ???
Posted by: Charles, NJ | Mar 21, 2008 11:05:24 AM
ss, this won't go away because Obama doesn't want it gone, it distracts from his connection to the anti-American racist pastor. I wouldn't be surprised if it turns out to be his own supporters giving him the out.
Posted by: toby hill | Mar 21, 2008 11:02:53 AM
BKMC- Us Obama supporters are always accused of our "Blind Following" on these posts but this is just the Hillary/McCain supporters refusing to believe that they could have dared to try something illegal and..get caught- when I saw this for the first time last night my first thought was oh man who did it this time- Clinton, Bush, or McCain...and if the other supporters take a minute to think about why they are so upset over our concern they might realize that they may have had exactly the same thought.Doesn't say much for their faith in the politics of their chosen candidates does it...?Regardless of them telling us we are "foolish" or we should just "drop it" lol- this will not go away..someone will be held accountable for what took place, the only question is - which one? I can't wait to find out.
Posted by: ss | Mar 21, 2008 10:56:32 AM
Thousands of people have access to the files within the state dept so I don't know why Obama is so upset unless he has something to hide? If it was a Hillary supporter does anyone suppose they found something? The system worked because it identified the people snooping and it turns out they had legal access but why the need for the access?
Posted by: toby hill | Mar 21, 2008 10:51:25 AM
The Clintons are corrupt. Go to Wikipedia and search for Travelgate, Whitewater, Impeachment, etc. You'll find out they are devoid of charachter.
I wouldn't doubt they or Senator McCain have something to do with this. They are campaigning together now, aren't they? =-)
Never trust a Clinton.
Posted by: Bethany | Mar 21, 2008 10:43:01 AM
I love how the press is so two faced about people being able to state their opinion.. they leave what they want posted up, and remove what they don't like. The so called freespeech advocates sensor their readers opinions. This will be removed soon as well.
Posted by: nofreedom | Mar 21, 2008 10:42:11 AM
Obama's just trying to divert attention from his anti-American racist pastor and his connection to this pastor.
Posted by: Tiny Tim | Mar 21, 2008 10:36:45 AM
Must have been Clinton supporters trying to dig for more dirt to add to the already embarassing precedent of character assassination Bill-ary has been engaged in ever since she was immediately crowned on Super Tues. On an unrelated note: GOOD JOB RICHARDSON!!
Posted by: Josh | Mar 21, 2008 10:32:11 AM
For those here blaming the administration, you need to get some facts straight. The administration already knows what's in the files because they have legal access to them. Hillary on the other hand has no legal access to them but would have loved to get a sneak peek. The system didn't break down because those allowed to see saw it's just that there was a log of them seeing and they had no reason to why they saw other than to help Hillary. Obama's going down fast but Hillary may have waited too late to pull out the stunts.
Posted by: Toby Hill | Mar 21, 2008 10:27:01 AM
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