Brown Statement on Unconscionable Publication of Documents that Could Help Terrorists

AMHERST - U.S. Congressman Sherrod Brown (D-OH) today released the following statement regarding troubling reports that the Senate Intelligence Committee pushed to publish materials that experts described as a "road map" for terrorists and rogue nations looking to build nuclear weapons in a failed attempt to find evidence of WMD already proven not to exist.

"Senator DeWine missed nearly half of the public Intelligence Committee meetings and failed to read the National Intelligence Estimate for nearly six months, which made me question his commitment to keeping us safe," said Brown. "The news that he did nothing to prevent the publication of information that could help terrorists create a nuclear weapon makes me question his judgment. There's nothing intelligent about posting materials on the Internet that could aid terrorists, and it's appalling that the rationale for doing so was an attempt to prove the existence of WMD that weren't there. All Americans deserve better than Senators who put partisanship and PR schemes before keeping our country safe, which is why Ohioans are going to vote for a change next week."

CITATIONS

To read today's blockbuster New York Times story detailing the Intelligence Committee's posting of dangerous nuclear secrets, click here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/03/world/middleeast/03documents.html
 
DEWINE ATTENDANCE RECORD

Over His Career, DeWine Missed Nearly Half of Public Meetings. 101 public committee meetings were held since 1995, when DeWine started his assignment on the committee. Of the 101 meetings, DeWine missed at least 48 of them. [Government Printing Office, c-span.org]

DeWine Missed At Least 48 Public Meetings. DeWine missed public meetings of the Senate Intelligence Committee on 5/16/2006, 2/2/2006, 7/21/2005, 7/19/2005, 6/16/2005, 5/24/2005, 4/19/2005, 2/16/2005, 6/18/2003, 10/9/2002, 4/25/2002, 4/17/2002, 2/7/2001, 9/26/2000, 6/14/2000, 6/8/2000, 2/2/2000, 6/9/1999, 2/26/1999, 2/4/1999, 7/8/1998, 5/22/1998, 5/21/1998, 2/11/1998, 2/4/1998, 10/1/1997, 9/18/1997, 3/13/1997,12/11/1996, 12/4/1996, 11/26/1996, 10/23/1996, 9/25/1996, 9/5/1996, 8/1/1996, 7/17/1996, 6/19/1996, 5/23/1996, 5/21/1996, 3/27/1996, 3/19/1996, 2/28/96, 2/22/96, 9/20/1995, 8/9/1995, 6/21/1995, 6/14/1995, and 5/3/1995. [Government Printing Office, c-span.org]

DeWine Ranks Among Worst for Attendance. During the 109th Congress, the combined attendance for DeWine's committee colleagues was 58%, while DeWine's attendance was a mere 33%. Only one member of the fifteen-member committee missed more meetings than DeWine. [Government Printing Office, c-span.org]

DEWINE WAITED SIX MONTHS TO READ THE NIE

DeWine Admitted He Doesn't Read the Intel Reports.  The latest National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) found that Iraq has become the "cause celebre" for jihadists, and "says the Iraq war is breeding potential new terrorists."  However, despite being a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, DeWine did not read the report until this week even though he had access to it in April.   Moreover, DeWine dismissed the central finding of the document, saying, "This was not considered any kind of seminal or groundbreaking National Intelligence Estimate." DeWine added, "There's nothing of great significance in this report." He only read it "when it became a flash point this week."   [Plain Dealer, 9/28/06; NIE Key Findings, April 2006]

11/03/2006 / Permalink / National Security, (all tags)