An Anonymous Hurricane Of Leaks

Here's a CIA leak story with some actual, gen-u-ine meat on its bones:

The Justice Department has launched a criminal investigation into whether Democratic Senators Dick Durbin, Jay Rockefeller and Ron Wyden leaked details about a secret "black ops" CIA satellite program last December in a move that may have seriously compromised national security, former Deputy Undersecretary of Defense Jed Babbin said on Saturday.

"The CIA made a request to the Justice Department to investigate and possibly bring criminal charges against these three [senators]," Babbin told WABC Radio host Monica Crowley. "My information is that investigation is ongoing."

That's not the only ramification coming down the pike for this trio's actions, either:

Asked if he thought the three Senate Democrats should have their security clearances revoked for the duration of the leak probe, the former Defense Department official said, "Absolutely and forthwith. I mean, they should have been revoked at the time of the leak."

Looks like Bill Frist's recent amendment seeking that very same action (though for different actions) against Durbin and Minority Leader Bill Frist wasn't just part of a "slapfest" after all.

This is far from the first time that Democrats have sought to compromise national security secrets, of course. Pat Leahy got thrown off the Senate Intelligence Committee for this sort of thing (earning him the eternal nickname "Leaky") during the Reagan years, Bill Clinton turned our inventory of classified military information into an espionage smorgasbord for the Red Chinese in the mid-90s, and just a few months back our old, dear friend Lurch Kerry, no longer having to pretend to be a patriot, also got into the act:

Senator John Kerry, who called for Karl Rove to be fired over allegations that he revealed the identity of CIA employee Valerie Plame, outed a genuine undercover CIA agent just this past April - even after the Agency asked that his identity be kept secret.

Kerry blew the cover of CIA secret operative Fulton Armstrong during confirmation hearings for U.N. ambassador nominee John Bolton.

Questioning Bolton, Kerry asked: "Did Otto Reich share his belief that Fulton Armstrong should be removed for his position?" - according to a transcript excerpted by the New York Times.

"The answer is yes," the [backbencher] Democrat continued....

Two years earlier, Armstrong had been identified in news reports on his dispute with other officials over intelligence involving Cuba. But he was operating in a different capacity and his identity wasn't secret at the time.

"When the Bolton nomination resurrected the old accounts, however, the C.I.A. asked news organizations to withhold his name," the Times said.

Apparently that wasn't good enough for the Boston Balker, so important was it that John Bolton, and by extension the man Mr. French failed to unseat last November, be shafted. Illustrating to redundant overkill that Democrats are incapable of not projecting their own utter paucity of morals and ethics onto their adversaries, there to pretend to be outraged by them.

Think of it this way: if Karl Rove is as big a Machiavellian genius as his enemies appear to believe, and he had been bent on outing Valerie Plame in order to "punish" Joe Wilson for screwing over the White House on the Niger/yellowcake affair, wouldn't he have been a lot better at the task than his clumsy, hypocritical, false accusers?

Heck, if Karl the Great is that good, he probably orchestrated this whole wild goose chase to make the DisLoyal Opposition look like the bumbling, petty fartknockers they really are.

As to their incompetently indiscriminate leaking, well, they have that honor all to themselves - and, hopefully, Rockefeller, Wyden, and Ali Dickbar al-Durbini will receive some complimentary greybar time to wallow in all its perverse glory.