Presidental Disclosure of Information Was Justified
April 24, 2006

The national media recently reported that in 2003 President Bush "leaked" classified information to the media concerning Saddam Hussein's desire to acquire nuclear weapons technology. In a frenzy of speculation, the media and many liberals in Washington charged the President was guilty of hypocrisy and perhaps wrong-doing in releasing the information. They are way off base.

The President has the legal authority and the right to release classified information whenever he feels it serves the public good. That fact has been established by the U.S. Supreme Court. Furthermore, it is simply not possible for the President to "leak" secret information. His decision to release classified material is not a leak but an act of declassification. This is what President Bush did in 2003 when he sought to explain to the media and the public why he chose to topple Saddam Hussein from power. It was not the first, and will certainly not be the last time, a president declassifies formerly classified material.

While criticizing the way the information was initially released by the White House to a reporter, even the liberal Washington Post acknowledged the President's right to release the classified material: "President Bush was right to approve the declassification of parts of a National Intelligence Estimate about Iraq three years ago in order to make clear why he believed Saddam Hussein was seeking nuclear weapons. Presidents are authorized to declassify sensitive material, and the public benefits when they do."

Meanwhile, the national media and liberals in Washington have piled on the President, calling his action hypocritical in light of the fact that he had earlier spoken out against unauthorized leaks. Their arguments fall short. Unauthorized leaks are just that - illegal activity. The President has rightly stated that the unauthorized release of classified material (leaking) should be punished. But to say that the President is guilty of the same conduct is just plain inaccurate and irresponsible.

Some critics who said the President was hypocritical in releasing classified information have also charged that the Bush Administration has been less than forthcoming in sharing intelligence with Congress - particularly about the Terrorism Surveillance Program. As a senior member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, I have some insight in this matter. While there was a delay in intelligence sharing in this case, the fault was not the Administration's. In fact, it was the House Democrat leadership who were to blame since they were very slow to agree on whom among their own membership should be briefed by the White House.

Frankly, the partisan firestorm over the supposed presidential "leak" is just another chapter in irresponsible allegations being leveled at the Bush Administration. Also this month, national media reports surfaced that implied President Bush had deliberately misled the public when he said that two trailers discovered in Iraq after the fall of Baghdad were long-sought "biological laboratories."

Based on the intelligence the President had at that time, U.S. officials did indeed believe the trailers were WMD-related. The President was relaying what he knew to be the truth. I'm not sure the same can be said this month for some of the Administration's critics.