| Submit your comments on this article |
| Home Front: Politix |
| Hamburgular To Plead Guilty |
| 2005-03-31 |
| HT Drudge Berger to Plead Guilty to Taking Materials By MARK SHERMAN, Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON - Former national security adviser Sandy Berger will plead guilty to taking classified material from the National Archives, a misdemeanor, the Justice Department said Thursday. Berger is expected to appear in federal court in Washington on Friday, said Justice spokesman Bryan Sierra. The former Clinton administration official previously acknowledged he removed from the National Archives copies of documents about the government's anti-terror efforts and notes that he took on those documents. He said he was reviewing the materials to help determine which Clinton administration documents to provide to the independent commission investigating the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks. He called the episode "an honest mistake," and denied criminal wrongdoing. Yeah, shove some classified papers down your breetches, thats a mistake--especially if an bent staple pokes 'something' Berger and his lawyer, Lanny Breuer, have said Berger knowingly removed the handwritten notes by placing them in his jacket and pants and inadvertently took copies of actual classified documents in a leather portfolio. He returned most of the documents, but some still are missing. Some are missing? The dog ate 'em... The charge of unauthorized removal and retention of classified material is a misdemeanor that carries a maximum sentence of a year in prison and up to a $100,000 fine. The materials related to a 2000 report on how government reacted to the terror threat prior to the millennium celebrations. Berger stepped down as an adviser to Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry's campaign last July after The Associated Press reported that the Justice Department was investigating the matter. Many Democrats, including former President Clinton, suggested politics were behind disclosure of the probe only days before the release of the Sept. 11 commission report, which Republicans feared would be a blow to President Bush's re-election campaign. |
| Posted by:BigEd |
| #3 LOL - all of you! I'm still amazed a Clinton official got caught and punished, even if it took extra time and effort (and a serious loss of WTF? on Sandy's part), it seems a bit satisfying |
| Posted by: Frank G 2005-03-31 8:09:26 PM |
| #2 "politics were behind disclosure of the probe" And pure partisan politics were behind the theft, as well. Misdemeanor? He is getting off so light... |
| Posted by: .com 2005-03-31 8:04:47 PM |
| #1 One misdemeanor count? That reminds me of a lawyer in Arkansas who was so good that he got a charge of sodomy reduced to "following too close." |
| Posted by: Matt 2005-03-31 8:04:19 PM |