LETTER TO EDITOR / WHAT HAPPENED TO “NEED TO KNOW”?

By Roger C. Kostmayer

Classified defense information that gets into the wrong hands can cost people their lives and threaten our national security.

Years ago, when technology was in its infancy, the US intelligence community had two rigid requirements for anyone to have access to classified information: CLEARANCE (obtained after rigorous background investigation);  and an explicit “NEED TO KNOW”.  If you were an admiral, general or senior CIA officer with the highest clearance but without an obvious need to know certain intelligence – you couldn’t see that classified document.

The obvious question that must be answered about the recent breach and violation of classified information is – why and how did a 21 year old enlisted Air Force National guard on Cape Cod get access to, and disseminate, highly classified international secrets?  He shouldn’t have had a high enough classification and he had absolutely no legitimate need- to-know what was in  those classified documents.

This event was a horrific breach that could affect international trust and relationships, as well as the war on Ukraine.  The young airman (who illegally retained and shared more than 100 classified documents), Jack Teixeira, is facing 10 years in the brig for every one of the violations with which he’ll be charged. Airman Teixeira’s friends described him as a “Christian Libertarian” who wanted to impress others.

It may also be interesting that Republican US Representative Marjorie Taylor Green (before attacking US support for Ukraine), defended the intelligence traitor Teixeira because he’s a “white Christian male”.

[livemarket market_name="KONK Life LiveMarket" limit=3 category=“” show_signup=0 show_more=0]