Press Freedom: The president worries about the "chilling effect" of leak investigations as his attorney general signs the warrant labeling a Fox News reporter as a violator of the Espionage Act. The hypocrisy is breathtaking.
'I am troubled by the possibility that leak investigations may chill the investigative journalism that holds government accountable," President Obama said with a straight face in a speech Thursday at the National Defense University. "Journalists should not be at legal risk for doing their jobs."
Indeed, investigative reporting should not be a criminal offense — just ask Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, whose digging unearthed Watergate.
Now comes the hysterically funny part:
"I have raised these issues with the attorney general, who shares my concern. So he has agreed to review existing Department of Justice guidelines governing investigations that involve reporters, and will convene a group of media organizations to hear their concerns as part of that review. And I have directed the attorney general to report back to me by July 12."
Well, Mr. President, you won't have to wait until July 12 to find out. NBC News has reported that your attorney general, Eric Holder, personally signed off on a controversial search warrant that identified Fox News reporter James Rosen as a "possible co-conspirator" in violations of the Espionage Act and authorized seizure of his private emails.
In an affidavit in support of a search warrant obtained by FBI Agent Reginald B. Reyes to secure Rosen's Google emails, it was stated:
"There is probable cause to believe that the reporter has committed a violation" of the Espionage Act "at the very least, either as an aider, abettor and/or co-conspirator of Mr. Kim."
Kim is State Department intelligence analyst Stephen Kim, who has been indicted on charges that he leaked to Rosen classified information regarding North Korea's plans to launch more nuclear tests.


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