- went can accept free-wheeling dis- free-wheeling accept can went -

about government security. security. government about

tion is safe to release. Documented Documented release. to safe is tion

public servants about what informa- what about servants public

pondent, has written extensively extensively written has pondent,

lieve, it is that society should not not should society that is it lieve,

trust the unilateral judgments of of judgments unilateral the trust

fects of our recent recent our of fects

establishment must overcome the ef- the overcome must establishment

their country's survival merely be- merely survival country's their win its case, however, the security security the however, case, its win

cause Xerox machines make docu- make machines Xerox cause

ments available to informers." To To informers." to available ments

publish military secrets endangering endangering secrets military publish

not not

that once commanded general ac- general commanded once that

secrets. It is reverting to a concept concept a to reverting is It secrets.

L Sulzberger recently wrote, "I do do "I wrote, recently Sulzberger L

press. New York Times columnist C. C. columnist Times York New press.

ceptance and, to a certain extent, extent, certain a to and, ceptance

ants criminally liable for spilling spilling for liable criminally ants still does, even among some in the the in some among even does, still

lid on secrets by making public serv- public making by secrets on lid

The intelligence community is seek- is community intelligence The

can obtain legislation tightening the the tightening legislation obtain can

ing to create a climate in which it it which in climate a create to ing

support of this idea. idea. this of support

sensus exists—or should be en- be should exists—or sensus

couraged to come into being—in being—in into come to couraged

to enforce their secrecy rules. The The rules. secrecy their enforce to

question is whether a popular con- popular a whether is question

obviously seek more effective ways ways effective more seek obviously

closure by individual decision as a a as decision individual by closure way of life. Responsible officials will will officials Responsible life. of way

garding what should and should not not should and should what garding

be withheld from the public." public." the from withheld be

whether our society should "trust the the "trust should society our whether Dec. 7 op-ed article in The Post. It is is It Post. The in article op-ed 7 Dec.

has raised a fundamental issue in his his in issue fundamental a raised has

tee during the congressional recess, recess, congressional the during tee

fore a House Intelligence subcommit- Intelligence House a fore

judgment of its public servants re- servants public its of judgment

Central Intelligence, who will be testi- be will who Intelligence, Central

fying on the CIA and the media be- media the and CIA the on fying

Daniel Daniel

The 'Healthful Effec Effec 'Healthful The

If history teaches anything, I be- I anything, teaches history If

The writer; a a writer; The

The issue is far from academic. academic. from far is issue The

It is undisputed that no govern- no that undisputed is It

Adm. Stanfield Turner, director of of director Turner, Stanfield Adm.

see see

what right the press has to to has press the right what

Schorr Schorr

former CBS corres- CBS former

past. past.

Pr/ Pr/

77 77

of Leaked Secrets Secrets Leaked of By Geoffrey Moss for The Washington Post Post Washington The for Moss Geoffrey By stitutional interest with nationalln- the government as well. This erosion Jordan, there was little evidence of terest A spate of recently released of unquestioning acceptance of the damage serious enough to outweight documents (prodded out of the files • judgment and integrity of superiors the public interest in knowing what —not irrelevantly—by invocation of was connected with the spate of un- the government is up to. the Freedom of Information Act) authorized leaks (not to be confused Adm. Turner says that, for the testifies to the systematic misleading with high-level, deliberate leaks). past year and a half, at any rate, the of the Warren Commission by a CIA Typically, disclosures have been CIA has not used secrecy to protect and FBI more concerned abo'ut their motivated by indignation over per- its reputation. Let us accept that as reputations than the integrity of the ceived misdeeds and misjudgments. true, although another CIA director inquiry into the , assassination of Their aim, generally, has been to might deem it a badge of honor to President Kennedy. When the CIA, serve, not harm the national interest. make such an assertion even if un- in a self-protective post-Watergate Ironically, Frank Snepp's accusation true. Still, it was only a little more internal investigation in 1973, discov- is that it was the government that be. than a year and a half ago that Adm. ered evidence of past improprieties, trayed the national interest in aban- Turner's predecessor, George Bush, such as domestic surveillance, postal doning the CIA's Vietnamese employ- was urging the Senate Intelligence snooping and assassination conspire- Committee—in secret session, of ties, it took corrective action, but course—not to disclose that Richard sought to avoid any public account- Taking Exception Welch, the murdered Athens station ing—until news leaks forced Presi- chief, had ignored the advice of dent Ford and Congress to launch in- agency security officers not to ex- vestigations. ees. Daniel Ellsberg, in his defiant is- pose himself unduly by moving into abuses of discretion have, in effect, • A President in trouble may con- suance of the Pentagon Papers, still his predecessor's house. Bush was snapped the invisible bond of confi- fuse national interest with personal took care to withhold portions that vigorously opposed by a member of dence between the citizens and the interest. That awesome phrase "na- he considered really sensitive. the committee, Sen. Walter Mon- government, which, in the past, left tional security" was debased by It is perhaps because of the selec- dale, who said that the CIA was not these decisions in the hands of the President Nixon into an instrument tive nature of whistle-blowing disclos- seeking to protect any national in- guardians of national security. The of coverup. It turned up almost rou- ures that there has been'so little com- terest, but only a red face. abuses have been of three kinds: tinely in court briefs opposing the re- promising of really vital national The awareness that "secrets" may • In normal times, officials tend to lease of material sought by Congress secrets. Officials tend to cry havqc at leak tends to have a healthy, ombuds- tilt toward secrecy from a parochial and Watergate prosecutors. "That's every security breach, but little evb man effect in government, making view of their responsibilities. They national security!" Nixon exploded as dence has been adduced of havoc ac- covert operators ask themselves how generally see disclosure as reducing he ordered Assistant Attorney Gen- tually wrought. The Nixon admin- their plans would look if they were their options for maneuver and as eral Henry Peterson to keep hands istration could not persuade a federal exposed. In balance, this nation has raising unnecessary problems. From off the newly discovered break-in on judge, in the privacy of his chambers, probably been harmed much less by where they sit, the perils of publica- Daniel Ellsberg's psychiatrist. of the "irreparable injury to the de• undue exposure than by undue se- tion always loom more menacingly Peterson's shattering experience fense interests of the United States" crecy. In the end, no oaths or regula- than the harm of public ignorance. —discovering that his highest supe- that it asserted would result from the tions will be fully effective before As a result, in the incessant contest rior could exploit "national secu- publication of the Pentagon Papers. confidence is restored in the employ-. between secrecy and disclosure, rity" for purposes of personal sear When the dust settled after rhetorical ment of secrecy to protect real they represent a party, but demand ritywas symptomatic of a • break- explosions over leaks like Henry Kis• secrets and not cost overruns, abor- also to be the arbiters. down of confidence in the govern- singer's orders about "tilting toward tive plots and personal wrongdoing. • Under unusual pressure, gov- ment secret-stampers, not only Pakistan" in its war against India, or That, to borrow Snepp's title, may re- ernment agencies tend to confuse in- among private citizens, but within the CIA's subsidy to King Hussein of quire "a decent interval".