FOXNews.com: How High Will Leak Probe Go?

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How High Will Leak Probe Go? Jun 9th 2012, 16:33 Attorney General Eric Holder on Friday assigned two U.S. attorneys to lead a criminal investigation into possible, unauthorized leaks of classified government information. The announcement follows a bipartisan call from Capitol Hill for an investigation and a special prosecutor to look into suspect national security leaks -- which congressional lawmakers say is needed because the disclosures have put Americans world-wide at risk and perhaps came from the Obama administration. Holder has assigned Ronald C. Machen Jr., a U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, and Rod J. Rosenstein, a U.S. attorney for Maryland. "These two highly-respected and experienced prosecutors will be directing separate investigations currently being conducted by the FBI," Holder said. "I have every confidence in their abilities to doggedly follow the facts and the evidence in the pursuit of justice wherever it leads." Holder said Machen and Rosenstein are "fully authorized" to prosecute criminal violations and talk with U.S. intelligence officials and that their investigations can reach into Congress and the administration. The CIA and the Justice Department's national security division said before Holder's announcement that they will not participate in investigations. President Obama said Friday the leaks did not come from the White House. "The notion that my White House would purposely release classified national security information is offensive," he said. However, the administration reportedly has not support the appointment of a special prosecutor. The calls for an investigation followed a series of recent news stories that detailed an Al Qaeda plot to detonate an explosive device aboard a U.S.-bound flight, cyber-attacks on Iran's nuclear program, U.S. drone attacks in the Middle East and the mission's human "hit list" -- culled personally by Obama. The New York Times said its story on the drone attacks was based in part on interviews with "three dozen of (Obama's) current and former advisers." The attorney general said he will work with the House and Senate Intelligence Committees, which lead the call for a special prosecutor. "The accelerating pace of such disclosures, the sensitivity of the matters in question, and the harm caused to our national security interests is alarming and unacceptable," Sens. Diane Feinstein, D-Calif., and Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., chairman and ranking Republican on the Senate intelligence committee, as well as Reps. Mike Rogers, R-Mich., and C.A. "Dutch" Ruppersberger, D-Md. chairman and ranking Democrat on the House intelligence committee, said in a joint statement this week. Arizona GOP Sen. John McCain and other have suggested the leaks were politically motivated, perhaps an attempt the bolster the president's image on foreign policy. Machen is leading a high-profile political corruption probe of officials in the District of Columbia. Before becoming U.S. attorney, Machen helped lead the white-collar and internal investigation practices at the prominent Washington law firm of WilmerHale. He served as an assistant U.S. attorney from 1997 to 2001. Rosenstein was an associate independent counsel who worked for Whitewater prosecutor Ken Starr from 1995 to 1997. He was co-counsel in the fraud trial of Jim and Susan McDougal, the former real estate partners of Bill and Hillary Rodham Clinton. The McDougals were convicted in a trial that also resulted in the conviction of then-Arkansas Gov. Jim Guy Tucker. The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, said he hopes that the Justice Department brings "the full force of the law against these criminals." "We need to send a clear message to anyone who considers leaking sensitive information and putting Americans at risk: If you leak classified information, you will face jail time," Smith said in a statement.

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