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`No investigation into US national security leaks`
White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said US President Barack Obama takes such leaks very seriously.
Washington: The White House has categorically ruled out initiating an investigation into alleged national security leaks from the Obama Administration, as being demanded by several key lawmakers.
However, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said US President Barack Obama takes such leaks very seriously.
"This is something that the President insists that his administration take all appropriate and necessary steps to prevent leaks of classified information or sensitive information that could risk our counterterrorism operations," he told reporters. Carney said the Obama Administration takes all appropriate and necessary steps to prevent leaks of classified information or sensitive information that could risk ongoing counterterrorism or intelligence operations.
"Any suggestion that the White House has leaked sensitive information for political purposes has no basis in fact and has been denied by the authors themselves, as one of the authors of The New York Times story on Obama`s counterterrorism record said, `The notion that the White House prompted the story or controlled our reporting and writing is absurd`," the White House official said.
Carney`s remarks came in response to questions as several US Senators have called for a special counsel to investigate a spate of recent national security leaks.
"A special prosecutor can take years. We don`t have years. We need to legislate and we need to do things quickly," Senate Intelligence Committee chairwoman Dianne Feinstein told reporters.
"It seems to be a pattern that is growing worse and more frequent... Their inability to keep a secret, this has been as serious a problem as I have seen," Congressman Mike Rogers said. The outrage among US lawmakers snowballed since last week when The New York Times story detailing the "Stuxnet" cyberattack against Iran, in which US officials were cited as sources.
Other leaks have led to stories about terrorism "kill list" and a double agent in Yemen.
All these stories threaten national security and put US’ interests at risk, lawmakers alleged.
PTI
However, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said US President Barack Obama takes such leaks very seriously.
"This is something that the President insists that his administration take all appropriate and necessary steps to prevent leaks of classified information or sensitive information that could risk our counterterrorism operations," he told reporters. Carney said the Obama Administration takes all appropriate and necessary steps to prevent leaks of classified information or sensitive information that could risk ongoing counterterrorism or intelligence operations.
"Any suggestion that the White House has leaked sensitive information for political purposes has no basis in fact and has been denied by the authors themselves, as one of the authors of The New York Times story on Obama`s counterterrorism record said, `The notion that the White House prompted the story or controlled our reporting and writing is absurd`," the White House official said.
Carney`s remarks came in response to questions as several US Senators have called for a special counsel to investigate a spate of recent national security leaks.
"A special prosecutor can take years. We don`t have years. We need to legislate and we need to do things quickly," Senate Intelligence Committee chairwoman Dianne Feinstein told reporters.
"It seems to be a pattern that is growing worse and more frequent... Their inability to keep a secret, this has been as serious a problem as I have seen," Congressman Mike Rogers said. The outrage among US lawmakers snowballed since last week when The New York Times story detailing the "Stuxnet" cyberattack against Iran, in which US officials were cited as sources.
Other leaks have led to stories about terrorism "kill list" and a double agent in Yemen.
All these stories threaten national security and put US’ interests at risk, lawmakers alleged.
PTI