White House Backs Attorney General Over Leaks Investigation

By Reuters

04 June 13

Statement backs Eric Holder, accused of lying to Congress about his involvement in the seizure of journalistic records

he Obama administration has hit back against Republican accusations that attorney general Eric Holder lied during a Congressional appearance last month.

Republican lawmakers alleged that he failed to tell the truth in testimony to the House of Representatives judiciary committee about the secret seizures of journalist records by the justice department.

Holder told the committee on 15 May that he was not involved in the potential prosecution of a reporter under the 1917 Espionage Act. Reports later surfaced that he had signed off on a search warrant and a subpoena for the records of Fox News reporter James Rosen.

On Sunday the New York Times reported that some in the White House had privately told associates that they wished Holder would resign.

White House officials said on Monday that Obama supports Holder, who has been his attorney general since he took office in 2009. Holder has faced a number of controversies over the years which the administration has blamed on Republican partisan manoeuvring.

Denis McDonough, the White House chief of staff, issued a statement saying that Obama and his team "believe that the attorney general has the intellect, experience and integrity to efficiently run the justice department and not get distracted by the partisans who seem more interested in launching political attacks than co-operating with him".

In a letter to Republican lawmakers on Monday, a justice department official wrote that prosecutors never sought to file criminal charges against Rosen despite the FBI describing him in an affidavit as a co-conspirator in espionage.

"At no time … before or after seeking the search warrant have prosecutors sought approval to bring criminal charges against the reporter," wrote Peter Kadzik, a deputy assistant attorney general, without naming Rosen.

Two Republicans on the House judiciary committee, chairman Bob Goodlatte of Virginia and James Sensenbrenner of Wisconsin, wrote to Holder on 29 May asking him to clarify the earlier testimony about prosecutions of reporters.

Monday's letter from Kadzik said that because prosecutors never sought to bring charges against Rosen, Holder's testimony "was accurate and consistent with these facts".

Kadzik also wrote: "We are unaware of an instance when the department has prosecuted a journalist for the mere publication of classified information."

Replying immediately to the letter, Goodlatte and Sensenbrenner said it was an inadequate response because it did not come from Holder himself.

Rosen reported in 2009 that US intelligence officials believed North Korea would conduct more nuclear tests in response to UN sanctions.

Stephen Kim, a former analyst at the state department suspected of being Rosen's source, faces trial on charges he violated an anti-espionage law.

Republicans shrugged off the criticism from the White House and insisted Holder had to provide some answers.

"I think that Eric Holder has damaged his credibility, and I think he should ask himself whether he's really effectively serving the president of the United States. Clearly there's been some contradictory statements," Republican senator John McCain told NBC's Today show.

Holder has been trying to assuage media concerns that justice department investigations into leaks have gone too far and are running counter to First Amendment freedom of press guarantees outlined in the constitution.