Graham: Prosecute WikiLeaks By Michael O'Brien - 07/28/10 12:47 PM ET
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Wednesday called for the criminal prosecution of Wikileaks, the website that published classified military documents this week.
Graham, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and a reserve military lawyer, seemed to go further than other GOP colleagues by calling for the prosecution of Wikileaks itself, and not just the source of the leaks.
“I’m willing to prosecute anybody who led to undermining the war effort,” Graham said during an appearance on Fox News.
“As far as I know, there’s no immunity for a website to be able to pass on documents,” Graham added, responding “yes” when asked directly if the website should be prosecuted.
Wikileaks has come under scrutiny for its decision to publish classified military documents detailing suspicions that elements within the Pakistani government were coordinating with the Taliban. These documents led to a full-fledged story in The New York Times, which has led to angry reactions from many lawmakers, who fear the leak undercut national security.
Graham’s colleagues — Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Rep. Pete King (R-N.Y.), among others — have called for the prosecution of whoever leaked the documents, but few have spoken of prosecuting Wikileaks itself.
McCain said Wednesday that he believes whoever leaked the documents to the organization should be punished with a life sentence.
Asked by syndicated conservative radio host Michael Medved if that was an appropriate punishment, McCain replied "Oh, I would think so."
Wikileaks’s founder has said he does not know the source of the leak. Reports have swirled suggesting that an Army private was responsible for the leak.
“We need to go after anyone who was involved in the leak of classified documents,” Graham said.
Jordan Fabian contributed to this post
This post was updated at 3:28 p.m. Source: thehill.com/blogs/blog-br...raham-prosecute-wikileaks The contents of this site are © 2010 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc. Comments (28) PAGE |1|2|> I hope Lindsey Graham doesn't want to prosecute Bradley Manning. They look like father and son. BY h. trib on 07/28/2010 at 13:21 It is amazing that Government officials want to prosecute who leaked the document, but did not want to prosecute the people that leaked similar documents during the Vietnam War or Richard Nixon. There has to be a single policy — not just when it is your ox that is getting gored.BY Cam Tidwell on 07/28/2010 at 13:22 Everyone hates a snitch, especially a gang member. The only aspect of the wiki leaks information not getting attention is the shocking number of civilian casualties. When a gangster shoots innocent byestanders they also show outrage towards any snitchs pointing the finger. Victims rights is never a concern in the criminal world, are the rights of civilian casualties of no concern in the Congress?BY gangster logic on 07/28/2010 at 13:30