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☆ Trump lacked power to declassify secret nuclear arms document, experts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-18 | by ( Jonathan Landay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/2] Former U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks following his arraignment on classified document charges, at Trump National Golf Club, in Bedminster, New Jersey, U.S., June 13, 2023. REUTERS/Amr Alfiky/File PhotoWASHINGTON, June 18 (Reuters) - Even when he was president, Donald Trump lacked the legal authority to declassify a U.S. nuclear weapons-related document that he is charged with illegally possessing, security experts said, contrary to the former U.S. president’s claim. The special status of nuclear-related information further erodes what many legal experts say is a weak defense centered around declassification. “The president is the executive branch and so he can declassify anything that is nuclear information,” he said. And it takes forever,” said Thomas Blanton, director of the National Security Archive.

Persons: Donald Trump, Amr Alfiky, Trump, ”, Steven Aftergood, David Jonas, Elizabeth Goitein, it’s, Thomas Blanton, Jonathan Landay, Don Durfee, Amy Stevens, Cynthia Osterman Organizations: U.S, Trump National Golf Club, REUTERS, WASHINGTON, Atomic Energy, Department of Energy, Department of Defense, Federation of Atomic Scientists, Prosecutors, Trump, Republican, Atomic Energy Act, DOE, Pentagon, AEA, U.S . National Nuclear Security Administration, Brennan Center for Justice, Constitution, DOD, National Security, Thomson Locations: Bedminster , New Jersey, U.S, declassify, declassification, United States, Florida

The court appearance on Wednesday by Jack Teixeira, a 21-year-old member of the U.S. Air National Guard accused of posting top secret military intelligence records online, has revived questions about whether leaks damage U.S. security in cases less clear-cut than the Hughes Glomar Explorer. "There is a potential ... for great damage because many of the most valuable intelligence methods are quite fragile," said Steven Aftergood of the Federation of American Scientists. FOUR KINDS OF DAMAGEMark Zaid, a Washington-based national security attorney, described four types of potential harm. The release of U.S. diplomatic and military documents on Wikileaks starting in 2010 contributed to two U.S. ambassadors losing their assignments. It is virtually impossible for outsiders to make a complete appraisal of the damage from leaks because internal assessments are themselves classified to avoid further disclosures.

The Pentagon said on Thursday it was reviewing and updating its distribution lists of classified documents. This meant, naturally, that many more people could now view classified information. "One of the things we learned from 9/11 is ... we really need to share information," said Michael Atkinson, a former U.S. Intelligence Community inspector general. But they cannot track co-workers' private online activities - for example, posting classified information to impress others. "The Insider Threat Program was looking for other Bradley Mannings," said Aftergood.

☆ Daniel Ellsberg, the Man Who Leaked the Pentagon Papers, Is Scared - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Alex Kingsbury | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The media as a whole has never really investigated the secrecy system and what it’s for and what its effects are. Q. What’s it like to live surrounded by thoughts of nuclear war and unaccountable government? I think about nuclear war not because I find it fascinating but because I want to prevent it, to make it unthinkable, because I care about the world that it would destroy. Q. Robert McNamara, who was secretary of defense during the Cuban missile crisis, once said, “The indefinite combination of human fallibility and nuclear weapons will destroy nations.” Why haven’t we seen nuclear weapons used since 1945? We have seen nuclear weapons used many times.

Persons: John Podesta’s, Snowden, Steven Aftergood, Steve, ”, Robert McNamara, They’re Organizations: Federation of American Scientists, WikiLeaks, National Security, RAND Corporation, Cuban Locations: Russian, California, Berkeley, Ukraine

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