Could U.S. Consider Official Secrets Act, Like Britain?

Could U.S. consider Official Secrets Act, like Britain?

http://rawstory.com/news/2005/Could_..._Act_0219.html

(Gold9472: Wasn't there something called the "Declaration Of Independence"? You know, where we tried to separate ourselves from Britain's laws?)

Published: February 19, 2006

Controversies over press disclosures about NSA domestic spying and CIA antiterror operations have led to renewed talk about the need for an American version of Britain's Official Secrets Act, NEWSWEEK reports in Monday editions. Excerpts:

House intelligence committee chairman Pete Hoekstra has spoken publicly about the need for a "comprehensive law" to make it easier to prosecute leakers, and last week his Senate counterpart, Pat Roberts, said he, too, thinks new measures may be considered.

But Bush critics accuse administration officials of being some of the most prolific leakers. Among leaks promoted by Bushies, critics say, were the outing of CIA agent Valerie Plame, prewar intel leaks about Iraqi WMD to former New York Times reporter Judy Miller, pro-Bush leaks to author-reporter Bob Woodward and Bush's recent disclosure of details of a 2002 Qaeda plot to attack Los Angeles's tallest building-details which may have closely paralleled the contents of a 2004 CIA report which remains classified.

CIA spokesman Paul Gimigliano told NEWSWEEK that Bush's remarks were "cleared through the normal interagency process. That review concluded that an unclassified discussion of the West Coast plot of 2002 would not affect current intelligence operations." It's unclear how quickly the GOP will move on the issue. One key Capitol Hill official, who asked not to be identified because of political sensitivities, suggested the legislation was not likely to get much traction soon, at least in the Senate.