SPILLING 'A HILL OF BEANS'

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP91-00561R000100060032-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 24, 2012
• Sequence Number: 32
• Publication Date: August 13, 1980
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

I iDeclassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/08/24: CIA-RDP91-00561R000100060032-0
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ARTICLE AP
ON PAGE
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NEW YORK TIMES
13 AUGUST 1980
The' .',:,..'Sirgic-'4'''-` ''' -- - . --: i2-,,,,, -1:_:,??,-1','1:,7,1-..1-::::: "confidential"
dent ::?f? ...7 Carter's ' 1 in ized disclosure
versy over Presi- ? :,', ?.,-.....? only if unauthor-
,
1
discussion, i of would - "dam-
classified -FInfor- age" national se-
maticrn ,With, his curity. Under -.
brother, Billy, if- '7 those standards, -
lustrates - three' -..44 ?-, the Libyan
. overlooked :key cables should
:points: The Gov- . ?1-!-- never have been
errunent unnec- , classified.
essarily ? classi-7-? t; ?_,...? According to
ties much infor-r: -`' ' - :- The New York
mation _ that.. iii:. Times, the State
trivial ??? .' while.' .',. By Bruce J. Ennis. -';. Department ad-
claiming falsely: :--.. .,-, , .:.mits that classi-
-.. that its release would damage national :. - tied but "rionsensitive cables were, in
security;? Government officials you-, practice, routinely released," and ac-
tinely leak l?-"classified information .. . -cording. to .:The Washington Star, the .--
favorable to themselves: .unneceSsarY :::: former State Department spokesman :
. classification and selective leaking iri- ?,: Hodding Carter 3d acknowledged that
i crease the likelihood that secrecy laws ?;'.;.- the department "leaks like a sieve," .:.
I will be enforced against critics of goy- :- and said that the White House, Na-
i eirunent but not against friends. The -' tional Security Council and the Dc-
convictions of Ronald Humphrey and tense Department also leaked infor-
1 David Truong underscore these points.. - , matiOn "for self-serving reasons and
1 - In 1978, the Administration prose- : for policy reasons." -,--
1 cuted Mr: Humphrey for giving "con- ? '. Control of - information increases
i fidential" documents, to Mr. Truone a
litical power': By classifying infor-
allegedly an agent Of North Vietnam: -mation unnecessarily, leaking favora-
Mr.. Humphrey ? and Mr. ?Truong ble information, and prosecuting those
claimed, unsuccessfully, that-. the
documents did not contain information w information
the'leak embarrassing ,
e Government augments its power
they were sentenced to 15 years. (In a and shapes public perception of its ac-
tions. `-,_ -: : r?-?::- ' ? .
that could harm national security;
similar case prosecuted by the Admin-
istration, the court ruled that "the
propriety" of a Classification is in-ele- hostages in Iran, the Government
vant; the fact- of - classification "is countered questions about the compe-
enough.") Mr. Truong was also con-
tence of the operation by leaking much
, .victed of acting as a- foreign agent unnecessarily - classified information
?:: without notifying theGovernment. Un- to show how thoroughly the attempt
-, :11ke Billy Carter, he was not given an had been planned. Some of the leaked
opportunity to avoid 'prosecution by fil- information may have been properly
ingbelatedly.?,?, ----4';',.- -37 'il--?-?,?-:'-, . ? . '..? ."-:' ? classified, and leaking it may have ..
, ..,The Senate is investigating the `.. jeopardized lives. We learned, for ex-
ample, as did Iran, that Central sibility - that: President Carter gave ;
, - Intel-
"confidential" documents to his broth- ligence Agency agents posing as Euro-
. er; an agent af Libya Like Mr. Hum- pean businessmen had leased ware-
phrey :and Mr.: TrUong,:? Mr:: Carter , ,,, house spaceas rescue staging areas. -
r?claims that the documents do not con- :-.1 do' not, suggest that Mr.. Carter
-,:- taiminformaticrn that couldharm na-.... . - ,should be prosecuted if he gave "clas-
sified" documents to Billy. No one ;
?,:-? floral security. As his press secretary, -
':JOdy Powelt !said,rtheiinformation in --. should be prosecuted for disseminat- f.
those documents- did not aniciat --:"t-naft-7., ing improperly classified but harmless ?
t hill of beans' "',,',,a-'- ?.-'?.-t''. -NZ??%%.%61' -?ii?.. '''' ? '?-?? information ? No ? de" I suggest it ;.wai'r.,
-;-
4dr: Powe Avii" right4Orte?-"Corifi , -,. wrong to warn Billy to register or face ' , lt:-"
,.." dentiar J-cable-reveals Athat -Libyan . : prosecution.' .;,17';;;..-?,.' .. .-f.....-_,:.i.:,- - '-..i ? -
'... news-media coverage :of ,BillY!s:. yisit 1, : ,_.: But there shoUld not be one standards.
: was-.:."routine -!..throughout,". that; 409 ? ? for-the Politically . powerful and an-:,
' AmericanS :attended an. embassy .re-?-_.. other for the Politically weak. ;.The 1
i - ception, :and?fthatHillY?-noted'"rapid '. , same rules that apply to a President:
'42,progress" i intI.!ibY-a, !-:partitnailY, in:and'. his brother should apply to Mr.:.
'A.the:,-..,agriculturaltfieId.7 Not ...mich". Humphreyand Mr. Truong. .? - .1-,..
I 7.? . I
C:there to shake the nation's sectiritYlA, -:-. Government -officials are unneceS.,
'seconcl,"confidential"; cable, reveals-, - sarily classifying harmless ,informa---
, the embarrassing fact that Mir charge. ... -... tion, leaking favorable and politically
,d'affaires in Libya had not received a'j ' -advantageous information, and selec-:, ,
-.shipment of household effects,. but he.- -., 'tively enforcing the law.: Although the .
had enjoyed a "private "swim-lunch'.''.." ' Contents of the ;Libyan Cables did not.,
..with Billy,'?who:was ;"strictly- On the - amount .to .!a hill of beans;" the inci-?
:wagon:: Another-"confidential"ca,ble.i.; ;:-:dent Should' prompt us to question the
?- ? complain.sjhat the.,:ecretatial,prpb7.:,,i;3".reality_ of. our..,constitutional,c9mmit,,..-
,lera" -at"the';'-einlias.sfrili'."genuirie;"[L?Inent to`eqiial jiiStiCe undei the law....
: And notes,that-thelLibyanSlhad tried Bruce J. Brinii is national- legal direo-
' --.
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/08/24: CIA-RDP91-00561R000100060032-0