Senators From Both Parties Call for Dept. of Justice to Investigate Passport Breach
Barack Obama is calling for a thorough probe of the breaches of three candidates' passport files, including his. (AP Graphic)
Senators from both parties on Sunday urged the Department of Justice to investigate the unauthorized searches of the passport files of three presidential candidates by State Department workers.
“That kind of a breach of privacy is just despicable,” said Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter, the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee. “I think that ought to be a very intense investigation.”
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., agreed, saying the incidents seem to point to a broader problem.
The Government Accountability Office has been warning about this problem for a decade. And it seems to me in this administration, there’s been pretty much a culture of disregard for privacy, and that’s part of the problem,” he said.
Both senators spoke on CNN’s “Late Edition.”
The State Department’s investigation into how and why the passport files of three presidential candidates were breached is scrutinizing an employee at a Virginia-based company, which is headed by an adviser to Barack Obama’s campaign.
The Washington Times, which broke the news Thursday that Obama’s files were improperly accessed, reported Saturday that the State Department inspector general’s internal probe will include polygraph tests of supervisors to determine whether there was a political motive behind the breaches.
The article said a focal point of the probe will be an employee who works for The Analysis Corporation and is still with the company. The firm is headed by John O. Brennan, an Obama adviser, FOX News confirms. The Times reported he advises the Democratic presidential candidate on intelligence and foreign policy matters.
The Times reported that the employee at TAC is the only individual who accessed both Obama’s and John McCain’s passport information. TAC decided to honor a State Department request to delay firing the consultant to give investigators time to conduct their investigation, the company said.
Two other contract workers were fired from Stanley Inc. after it was discovered they accessed Obama’s files. It could be challenging for the State Department to force them to answer questions, however. Unless they volunteer to cooperate, they would have to be served with a subpoena compelling them to testify before a grand jury.
Obama’s campaign at first questioned whether the senator was targeted for political reasons, but on Friday the State Department revealed Sens. Hillary Clinton and McCain also had their files improperly accessed. The State Department believes the cases could be just a matter of “imprudent curiosity,” but the internal investigation and a separate congressional probe are expected to delve into whether it was anything more.
“There are still many unanswered questions, including why these passport files were accessed and for what purpose,” Obama’s office said in a statement late Friday. “Sen. Obama believes a thorough investigation of these privacy breaches is necessary and expects one that is prompt and thorough.”
A fourth worker tapped into Clinton’s records as part of a training session last summer, the State Department said, and that violation was immediately recognized and the person admonished.
The Justice Department is monitoring the effort.
“None of us wants to have a circumstance in which any American’s passport file is looked at in an unauthorized way,” Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said as she offered apologies to the candidates.
The unauthorized digging into electronic government files on politicians recalled a 1992 case in which a Republican political appointee at the State Department was demoted for searching Bill Clinton’s passport records when Clinton was running against President George H.W. Bush.
Obama’s files were compromised on three occasions — Jan. 9, Feb. 21 and March 14. The department’s internal computer system “flags” certain records, including those of high-profile people, to tip off supervisors when someone tries to view the records without an appropriate reason.
It was not clear whether the employees saw anything other than the basic personal data such as name, citizenship, age, Social Security number and place of birth, which is required when someone fills out a passport application.
The files also include date and place of birth and address at time of application. Agency officials said the files generally would not list countries the person has traveled to.
Attorney General Michael Mukasey said the case has not yet been referred to the Justice Department for investigation, but he did not rule out the possibility of the Justice Department taking an independent look.
Click here to read the article in The Washington Times.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Here we go again spending big bucks for somthing that is as old as yesterdays newspaper. We ordinary citizens are invaded on a daily basis. What information
is on a passport worth looking at anyway? The Justice department is not filing charges against the DNC for destroying and not counting the Florida and Michigan votes. Then again we are simply ordinary citizens with out rights denied.
If Obama sat for twenty plus years and didn’t hear what Rev. Wright said he would not know anything about passports. See no eveil , hear no evil,etc.
Always remember if a canidate is self nominated(and i dont know of 2 persons that nominated Obama or any of the other Pres. canidates for that matter) that that person has a political agenda(for the good or bad) and 9 times out of ten, its not for the betterment of the majority of the citizens of this nation,”USA”.
Good example of one of the greatest statesman(not politician) and had his birthday stripped off the calender and replaced with “Presidents Day” was George Washington??? George Washington didnt want to be president, he had just fought a horrible cold revolutionary war and wanted to go home to be with his family, George had no political ambitions whatsoever, no he was practically begged to be the first president of the USA…by all that knew him or new of him???
See this’s the problem with America today we have an overwhelming number of politicians in congress (not statesment) major difference in the two is, one a statesmen is nominated by petition of the people or more than just his close family and friends and has no special interest agendas or never had political ambitions at all, Second a politician is 9 times out of 10 self nominated or nominated by a mynute group of elite cronies with agendas so far out of touch with the welfare of the majority of America that its rifthmic or socially tramatizing???
My fellow Americans beware of political ambitous or self nominated its a greviously dangerous game, if they have a stanch desire to be a canidate then their an agendas politician and your ideas mean nothing to them. However if they have no desire to be a candidate having good morals, with good people skills, and a decent education, and are petitioned by the people then there’s your man. People can we wakeup fast enough to realize the political debacle America has gotten herself into before its to late, or is it already to late????
I find it funny that the CEO of the company of the person that breached his passport is an ADVISOR to him!!! The employee looked at the file THREE times…………. a matter of curiousity? I think not. WHAT did they go erase????????????????????
My question would be since the CEO of the company that accessed Obamas file and the “employee” acessed his THREE times……………………….what did they erase? Why did they have to access it three times if it was a matter of curousity?????? Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm something fishy here!
All of you are making much to do about nothing. This is nothing more than contractor employees letting curiosity get the best of them. The government has many systems in place (i.e. the IRS) that have security checks covering the records for the rich and famous to stop curious employees from looking in such records. For example, how many IRS employees would peek in Bill Gate’s records if there were no policies or policing mechanisms in place to prevent them from doing so. The employees that were stupid enough to do this on the passport records deserve to be fired and one of the more serious things a person can do that has a security clearance as these employees probably dues is the misuse of a government computer.
my Friend Republican and me Democrat, We both agree, that there are great democrats, and republicans, who believe, that Mr.Obama should not won democratic nomination. The whole mass ,did not start Mrs Clinton,or Democratic Party, but Obama Himself.
Mrs. Hilary Clinton is a true fighter, and as Mr. McCain. Mr.Obama is not uniting US, but deviding, We knew this from begining, and We were right.
Blamig Mrs. Clinton and Republican Party, or Democratic Party, and acting like an IDOL< didnt work. The magic is gone!!!
I will like to see, who donated that 50 milions to Obama campain???
He wants to see Mr.Hillary records, like if She is on trial, what an ignorance!!!
Students donate 32 milions, absurd!!!
Now is time, for Mr.Obama recordsm back at list 30 years. Drugs, buing , mayby selling to, what else.
What took so long, all those CNN “detectives”, who spend most of their time, attacking Mr.Mrs Clintons, and Mr.McCain!!!
when i woke up and turning on my tv, I saw Bill Richardson, New Mexico Governor endorsing Barrack Obama. THis did not occur as a surprise to me because before Super tuesday if I am not mistaken, Former Economic hero, Prisident Bill CLinton ask for endorsement from New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson to Hillary, he did not respond. fortunately the brave Clinton’s went to his State an won the election during Super Tuesday.
On an interview between Larry KIng and Bill Richardson, he was asked the same question if he will endorse Hillary since she won the New Mexico primary. When he made the comment that she only won by 1%. immediate I knew he wanted to endorse Obama instead of the Clinton’s whom he worked in their administration which probably help his political career that today he is a governor in New Mexico.
in addition, I personally think he want to be a potential runnermate. I hope Mr Richardson succeed to realise his dreams because if it dosen’t work out. I reserve my comments on this issue.
since there is a lot of betraying going on in the democratic party as a register democratic vote I am thinking voting for John Mccain in the general election
I do not care who appointed . Mr.Tennet. Mr.Tennet is resnsible for His action, not who appointed Him.
If was Mr.Bush, or Mr. Clinton, Tennet still is was responsible for His decisions.
But Mr.Obama knew about John O. Brennan very well, and He thought, that Mr.Brennan is a clearly cover, and seams, that spying onHis opponents trips, will be cover, but suprise, and how naive is Mr.Obama. Sure, I do not want Him to be my President!!!