The Classified Documents Breach
I would like to offer a former practitioner’s perspective on the importance of assigning security classifications to certain government documents, and the gravity with which they have traditionally been viewed. This is not a venture into a political treatise, but rather a plain vanilla viewpoint on the importance of maintaining various levels of confidentiality where it concerns matters of our national security.
First, I offer the example of my own experience with these matters. During my twenty years of military service, I maintained the highest level of security clearance: Top Secret/Crypto. This meant that I was entrusted with viewing the kinds of documents that would be critical to our country’s security. My background was thoroughly vetted in advance of this clearance, as should be the case for whoever is entrusted with this high level of the government’s confidence. I have always considered this to be the paramount responsibility of my career, and I never knew of anyone so entrusted, who would even think of betraying this “platinum level” responsibility. I can’t be more specific about my clearance than to say that I knew an awful lot about our nuclear targeting scheme, along with our plans for airborne response to any nuclear threat.
There have been examples of a few people, rightfully labeled as traitors, who have compromised our national security by their willingness to give/sell secrets to our enemies. In the 1950’s, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were convicted to giving atomic bomb secrets to the Russians. They were eventually caught, tried and executed. During later years of the Cold War, someone in our government employ leaked the names of our agents operating clandestinely in Russia. This resulted in the capture and executions of several agents, who were, in face, Russian citizens. This act compromised our security operations severely, with political and diplomatic consequences that reverberated for years afterward.
That anyone entrusted with our national secrets would treat their responsibilities with less than the utmost care, is inconceivable to me, for the reasons I have already stated and even beyond. The thought of our enemies being in possession of secrets that would potentially compromise our national security, give the enemy military or economic advantages, and ultimately result in the deaths of untold numbers of our citizens, is likewise inconceivable. The entire premise of our national defense rests on our ability to maintain a level of superiority that will make potential enemies want to remain at peace. Peace Through Strength, is what we were always taught.
But now we have a situation where a person who formerly held our highest political office, has taken the liberty of appropriating hundreds of classified documents and sequestered them for almost three years in his private residence. These documents have been stored in unsecured locations on the property The possessor had refused, on several occasions, government request/demands that they be returned, resulting in what is now mistakenly called a “raid.” Pursuant to court order, the property was entered by the FBI, thoroughly searched, and any likely documents removed. The possessor has offered the rationale, now discredited, that he actually “owned” the material and could have de-classified them by merely telling his people so, or by “thinking about it.”
In response to this flagrant misappropriation of classified materials, the federal government has now indicted the possessor on thirty-seven counts of misappropriation and/or misuse of classified government materials. And this is where the situation gets politically sticky. Supporters of the former possessor will offer him unqualified support of this claim is all “just a government witch hunt,” among other non-supported statements. The country is now divided between the opposing notions of a politically-motivated power move, and the government view that, in fact, a most serious criminal act has been perpetrated by the very individual who was the standard-bearer of our security system. I will leave any partisan debate to those who choose to engage in it. My own position, as a former front-line aircrew commander of nuclear bombers, is that ANY disclosure of classified materials, whether intentional or accidental, is a crime against us all. Personally, it would have ruined my entire day, had the Rooskies been lying in wait, pre-informed, as I flew on my appointed mission to obliterate a target. That, instead of now enjoying a comfortable retirement from the active segment of our defense forces.
So I take it as an affront to myself and our our entire defense organization, when I learn that my former commander-in-chief has been indicted (not convicted) of an offense for which I would have faced a military firing squad back in the day. Politics be damned! When a guy takes it upon himself to re-write or re-interpret the law, to his own advantage, then he has earned the right to a speedy trial. If he’s innocent, so be it. If he’s found guilty, then he should pay the same price as any thief, with such garnishments as the law allows. I reject the claims that we are engaging in a two-tiered, politically driven justice system. At least not in this case. I’m not so naive as to be pollyannish about the interjection of politics into our justice system. I am trying very hard to distinguish between the current case and those which actually contain a political component. So far, all I see is a person at the pinnacle of our entrustments, who has flagrantly abused one our most integrity-based laws. This old Crewdog wants to see the kind of justice that will result in the security of us al, and act as a deterrent to others who would play fast and loose with our national security. It’s far too important to leave to the politicians.
George Thatcher
June 2023
George is an American Bad Ass. He grew up in Jersey, flew B-52s in Vietnam, taught English, Spanish and other languages to children around the world, makes his own salsa, has been known to enjoy a beer or two and has called Lubbock home for a few years, just to entertain the locals. Welcome to Raiderland, Major. We are going to feature some of his writings going forward. Some new, some old. Some rhyme, some don’t. When it comes to George, there’s no box. So… enjoy our friend and enjoy his writings! – Hyatt
