CONFIDENTIAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT OF THE HERALD OF FREEDOM

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00552R000404030001-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 22, 2010
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: September 1, 1973
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/22 : CIA-R
'TT
of The
Herald of Freedom
THE SONNEN1'ELDT CASE --
The press, led by the N.Y. TI\IES and [lie 1Vaslrington POST, has charged to the rescue of llelniut
Sonnerlfeldt, all insider whose steady We in the behind the-scenes bureaucracy ruling [he Aniericaui people
may he coining to the end, now that he has emerged from hchiu(I-the-scenes. AVliilc the Senate. 1'?inaumce
Committee is considering his nomination as Under Secretary of the '('r('asury, [lie house internal Security
Comniitice is checking into his siibver.-~ivc background. Powerful forces are bonging pressure to hear to have
Sonncnfeldl, top assn taunt to Ilenry (Kissinger, confirmed in spiU ! of his previous e hioiiage actiyitici.
President Nixon nominated the 46-year old Sorineiifeldt to he Under Secretary of the 'seam'y in which
post Sonnenf eidt would have the responsibility of shaping Hie Aduiinistraiiou's plans for increa ing
East-\Vest trade and for eslah!ishing a new international monetary system thai would include Communist
nations. Several former Foreign Ser1ice career officers filed objections and testified against the nonrinaliou
which was referred to the Senate Finance Committee for confirmation hearings on May 15, 1973.
On July 26, 1973, Congressman John Al. Ashbrook of Ohio, Senior Republican Minority mcruhe.r of the
house Internal Seenrity Coniniittee, opened hc,lrin('s on the Federal Civil Employees Loyalty Security
Program. The beards,: are being hold in executive session and informed sources stale that Otto 0tepka's
testimony about security risks employed by the Slate Department will he shoed,ing when puhli:he(1. Alr.
Otepka personally handled one of the investigations on Ilelnint Soi nenfel(dt, winch involved a 2-1-hour a
day surd cillau;c.e, a legal wiretap on his telephones and the intervielving of nii microns vv itnrsscs. It was
conclu siycly determined that oil more than one occasion Soil [let fcldt had turned over secret documents
tool coufidentiad iiiforination to unauthorized persons among whom were agents of a foreign power.
Assistant Attorney General Henry E. Petersen who is in charge of the Criminal Division of the
T)epartrnent of Justice, recently testified before the Serrate 11'afergate Couirnittce and was in complete,
support of President. Nixon's innocence in ('connection with 1V'alergale. lie is also ill collk)]etc niipport of
Sonnenf(-id1. 1'',hen 1'e-tersen's attention was called to )and Scott's syndicated colunin which revealed details
of Sonnenlednt s act of turning over secret docuineriIs to foreign advents, he replied as Collor',.;: (Quote)
'1'hi~s is in response to your recent letter to the Attorney General concealing a recent newspaper W &W by
Paul Scott discussing the nomination of Mr. llelrnut Sunnenfcldt to he Under Secretary of the 'I'rcasmiry
Department and y,hellier lie 1voa!d be a suitable camm iidale for that position.
Executil e Order 1 () 1:51 rl'(lnirc> that an investigation be hullo of all employees of the executive braulclr
before Ilwy can he arccpted for a position. The Order t'iirther re(pares that all (n'rsns liiilileged to he
employees in (hr cxcci!tike blanch must he loyal io the. Uuilcd St;lic.s? and that no orie may huld such a
~('.ilrllll!' I)t),!(lull `.,"Itll the gl)11'l'I11ie7il Illllt'r$ his erlil)IU)'nll'irt I det('i'illlil('(1 l(1 be l;il'al'1 c0Ilsi:,!cn( with
the Ill tt'i .': Is (If (Iw icitton;ll st?cl(rlty. l ht`c rc(jlrircments apply; ill' conr.se, I() )!I
illchillin'~; tho'' to b(' an tlmo ('m- sl'.('rc'timry.
Ill accnr,l;(n('c 'dill (hat Order, th;' 1Aederal lh:wan of I!l\e,ti,:atioll has c(,n(lucted a number of
nlye.stiea!tIul)- of Vr. ~; u inr!lf('lilt s ell:!racter all(] (ovally lam (orlile('li ( \w itll yaritms po,; iilolls he It :s ll('ld ill
(hail c\, branch ill (li(. Karat. In :I!I of thou' e:t e , the rc? ally, 1)cre dote:dill: 1! tO bc' ra!!(I(?.']'hus
(
rl tilruml"cl c remlant di the i'oni --ilt.s ()t all`. Ot rile ]ill{'1?alil 1111 t': I!h;lll\'t' Iill's to one (,ilt:.iile time
F(~1+ sal g o'.er;din( rlt, 1111' ms-silk of lu -i' isle liga{iun, do nut