By Matt Loffman

Feb 4, 2010 5:49pm

Sen. Bond to the WH: ‘I’m Supposed to Apologize?’

From Sunlen Miller:

The ranking Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee, Sen. Kit Bond, R-Mo., dismissed the White House’s call for him to apologize for alleging that the administration leaked information about Umar Farouk Abdulmuttalab for political reasons.

"After telling me to keep my mouth shut, the White House discloses sensitive information in an effort to defend a dangerous and unpopular decision to Mirandize Abdulmutallab and I’m supposed to apologize?" Sen. Bond said in a paper statement today.

Bond’s statement followed White House press secretary Robert Gibbs’ strongly-worded suggestion today that the Senator owed an apology to the law enforcement community and those who work in the White House.

Gibbs took issue with Bond’s letter sent this afternoon to President Obama in which he said the "release of this sensitive information” about the interrogation of Abdulmutallab by the White House has “no doubt been helpful” to  Abdulmutallab's "terrorist cohorts around the world."

Bond received a briefing on Monday from FBI officials and he says they then "stressed the importance of not disclosing the fact of his cooperation in order to protect on-going and follow-on operations to neutralize additional threats to the American public," Bond wrote in a letter to the president today, "FBI Director Bob Mueller personally stressed to me that keeping the fact of his cooperation quiet was vital to preventing future attacks against the United States."

Robert Gibbs said today "no briefing is done here or anywhere in this administration where classified information is used in a place where it shouldn't be," and demanded an apology.

One that – as of now – he won’t get from the Senator.

-Sunlen Miller

User Comments

Repubs, directed at only one goal since January 21, 2009-discrediting the Commander-in-Chief-will never apologize, never admit fault, and always counter-attack. (See Ex.CIA Director Porter Goss) To them it’s immaterial that their antics put American servicemen and women in more danger.

Posted by: B.Bear | February 4, 2010, 6:18 pm 6:18 pm

Senator Bond the old hack from Missouri should be ashamed of himself. Stop playing with the American people, and if terrorism is so important and we are at War with it…then let the experts such as the intelligence community, the FBI, Homeland Security etc do their jobs, Sir.

Posted by: sara | February 4, 2010, 6:18 pm 6:18 pm

I don’t think I would apologize either. Seriously, Obama doesn’t know how to pronounce corpsman, and this man is our Commander in Chief. Thats a little scary.

Posted by: Chuck | February 4, 2010, 6:45 pm 6:45 pm

Chuck,
Can you prove that? Please provide a link. Heck, Bush couldn’t pronounce nuclear, so what?

Posted by: ACME | February 4, 2010, 6:49 pm 6:49 pm

Well perhaps if he prounced the military corpsman correct and recognized that TERRORISTS DO NOT have Constitutional RIGHTS then perhaps he would actually STOP telling our state secrets to the world.
He is do ideologically LEFT and has spent the better part of the last 5 years working to UNDERMINE our National Security that he has FORGOTTEN that he is now responsible for the lives of 300+ million people instead of just some stupid Democrat working to defeat President Bush!

Posted by: JadedByPolitics | February 4, 2010, 6:51 pm 6:51 pm

Funny that when Bush was president, the Republicans said the Democrats should not criticize the commander in chief while the country is at war. Now that there is a Democratic president, they say whatever they want to hurt him (and the country).

Posted by: Vicky | February 4, 2010, 6:51 pm 6:51 pm

Sara – by the way you ended your message it’s clear you’ve been watching too much Olberman. I agree with Bond. Obama has no idea what he is doing.

Posted by: Mike in Costa Mesa | February 4, 2010, 6:54 pm 6:54 pm

Right on, Senator Bond – the White House should apologize!

Posted by: MissButterfly | February 4, 2010, 6:59 pm 6:59 pm

Now Obama has made as many gaffes as Bush did – so case closed on that one. Go Senator Bond. Americans are sick of this President’s condescending attitude. He screws up and then demands an apology. What a fool. No wonder European newspapers call him President Pantywaist.

Posted by: M Duncan | February 4, 2010, 6:59 pm 6:59 pm

“TERRORISTS DO NOT have Constitutional RIGHTS”
It appears that jaded needs to graduate from the 6th grade so they can take a beginning US history course

Posted by: Flash Override | February 4, 2010, 6:59 pm 6:59 pm

“the Republicans said the Democrats should not criticize the commander in chief while the country is at war.”
Almost correct. They did say that IOKIYAR, but what they actually said was that the country needs to be at war so that Democrats shouldnt criticize the President.
BTW, the president is only CinC during times of war.

Posted by: Flash Override | February 4, 2010, 7:03 pm 7:03 pm

Heck no he shouldn’t apologize and good for him for telling the white house to stuff it.
This admin’s incompetence is going to get people killed.

Posted by: Rick H. | February 4, 2010, 7:16 pm 7:16 pm

Sen Bond(R-Boeing)is never going to live down his vote in favor of torture. He has been particularly slimy in that he has attempted to justify torture yet at the same time refuse to call it torture.
Classic consciouness of guilt.

Posted by: Flash Override | February 4, 2010, 7:17 pm 7:17 pm

NO WONDER OBAMA WOULD BE DENIED SECURITY CLEARANCE IF HE WOULD TRY TO ENTER THE ARMED FORCES AS A NEW RECRUIT. AND THIS MAN IS OUR COMMANDER AND CHIEF?

Posted by: Tom Barnow | February 4, 2010, 7:17 pm 7:17 pm

Go Sen Bond. You don’t have to put up with this WH’s condescending junk.

Posted by: M Duncan-Hanks | February 4, 2010, 7:18 pm 7:18 pm

WE KILL THE TERRORISTS OVERSEAS ON A DAILY BASIS – AS THEY ARE OUR ENEMY. WHY TREAT THE TERRORISTS OVER HERE ANY DIFFERENT? SAMES STUFF – DIFFERENT LOCATION. DUH. OH, I FORGOT, I GUESS WE HAVE TO GIVE THEM THE CHANCE TO PROVE THAT THEY ARE NOT TERRORISTS. OBAMA HAS ALREADY GIVEN THEM A BREAK BY SAYING THAT THEY WILL BE FOUND GUILTY AND EXECUTED. AND HE WAS A LAW PROFESSOR???? DUMB!!!

Posted by: Tom Barnow | February 4, 2010, 7:28 pm 7:28 pm

This administration is like George Costanza. Can’t keep a secret.
JERRY: Hey. How’d it go with Gary?
GEORGE: (shifty, avoiding Jerry’s eyes) Fine, fine. (he removes his coat)
JERRY: (suspicious) Really?
GEORGE: (shifty) Yeah.
JERRY: You look like something’s on your mind.
GEORGE: No. Nothing. Fine. (he sits at the table)
JERRY: So, that’s your poker face.
GEORGE: My regular face.
JERRY: No it isn’t. I’ve seen your regular face. That is not it.
GEORGE: What are you saying?
JERRY: All right George, c’mon, what d’you got? (sits opposite George)
GEORGE: I got nothing.
JERRY: What you got, a pair of bullets?
GEORGE: What you talking about?
JERRY: Two pair? Three of a kind?
GEORGE: Will you stop it?
JERRY: Oh my God, you got a flush! You’re holding a flush!
GEORGE: I don’t have a flush.
JERRY: A full house? You got a full house? Turn ‘em over George, I wanna see
‘em. Come on, I’m calling! (thumps hand on table) What d’you got!
GEORGE: (broken, shouts) Gary Fogel never had cancer!

Posted by: Live! From DC! It's Saturday Night! | February 4, 2010, 7:32 pm 7:32 pm

Obama’s latest (“corpse-man”) gaffe:
<a href="http://####

Posted by: DB | February 4, 2010, 7:35 pm 7:35 pm

I don’t think I would apologize either. Seriously, Obama doesn’t know how to pronounce corpsman, and this man is our Commander in Chief. Thats a little scary.
Posted by: Chuck | Feb 4, 2010 6:45:36 PM
Chuck,
Can you prove that? Please provide a link. Heck, Bush couldn’t pronounce nuclear, so what?
Posted by: ACME | Feb 4, 2010 6:49:01 PM
I think it was at the Prayer Breakfast this morning. And if you’ve been around here long enough, you’d know links are not allowed.
“Heck, Bush couldn’t pronounce nuclear, so what?” Exactly! Bush is still being laughed for that! You don’t like it when Obama is made fun of – but you’re ok making fun of Bush?

Posted by: Live! From DC! It's Saturday Night! | February 4, 2010, 7:39 pm 7:39 pm

RT @Live! From DC! It’s Saturday Night!:
—————————————-
“YOU CAN STUFF YOUR SORRIES IN A SACK MISTER!!!”
G. Costanza

Posted by: Mike in Costa Mesa | February 4, 2010, 7:41 pm 7:41 pm

Bring on the Special Prosecutors ala the Plame affair. Let’s see who is hiding what.

Posted by: twg | February 4, 2010, 7:43 pm 7:43 pm

To my friends on the left, maybe I am missing something but it appears that the Administration got caught politicizing this issue and then when called out for their bad judgment, they attempted to shame the person who had first hand knowledge and refuted what they had been saying. So you have people who were not in the meeting calling a sitting Senator a liar.

Posted by: gsplsngr | February 4, 2010, 7:45 pm 7:45 pm

“they attempted to shame the person who had first hand knowledge and ‘refuted’ what they had been saying”
I don’t think that word means what you think it does.
Bond got caught lying. Again.
Bond is now trying the hypocritical IOKIYAR gambit, assuming that we’ll forget his role in the Plame affair.

Posted by: Flash Override | February 4, 2010, 7:50 pm 7:50 pm

the Administration got caught politicizing this issue and then when called out for their bad judgment, Posted by: gsplsngr | Feb 4, 2010 7:45:26 PM
“I need you to go out and talk to your friends and talk to your neighbors. I want you to talk to them whether they are independent or whether they are Republican. I want you to argue with them and get in their face,” – Obama

Posted by: Live! From DC! It's Saturday Night! | February 4, 2010, 7:57 pm 7:57 pm

BTW, the president is only CinC during times of war.
Posted by: Flash Override | Feb 4, 2010 7:03:41 PM
Not sure that’s true:
“The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States;”
which I believe means when the militia is called into service (if that’s what you are referring to). I would say he is always the Commander in Chief.
Anyone?

Posted by: Live! From DC! It's Saturday Night! | February 4, 2010, 8:02 pm 8:02 pm

TYPICAL LIB RESPONSE. IF YOU CAN’T JUSTIFY YOUR POSITION – TRASH THE OPPOSITION. ONE OF THE REASONS AIR AMERICA FAILED – VERY LITTLE RATIONAL DISCUSSION OF ISSUES AND A LOT OF OPPOSITION PUT-DOWNS – AFTER AWHILE IT JUST GUT BORING.

Posted by: Tom Barnow | February 4, 2010, 8:04 pm 8:04 pm

Have followed Senator Bond for many years.He is one of the few truely HONORABLE men serving WE THE PEOPLE!

Posted by: Eli L | February 4, 2010, 8:32 pm 8:32 pm

“I need you to go out and talk to your friends and talk to your neighbors. I want you to talk to them whether they are independent or whether they are Republican. I want you to argue with them and get in their face,” – Obama
__________________________________
Oh, how terrible!

Posted by: tierra | February 4, 2010, 8:53 pm 8:53 pm

Thank you, Sen. Bond!
This group of coercive, dishonest political hacks make every other administration in my lifetime look FANTASTIC, every single one
Don’t give these thugs an inch.

Posted by: Carol | February 4, 2010, 8:56 pm 8:56 pm

Kit Bond is a good man. I am proud to have him as my Senator.
Obama is a disgrace, his administration is a pathetic waste of human flesh, and the current dumbocrats and rinos are essentially, for all practical purposes, enemies of the Constitution.
We must end the reign of politicians that have never participated in the private sector and use their positions to grow their personal wealth and influence. Serving in office should be temporary and limited.
Ted Kennedy is a prime example. He grew tremendous wealth while “serving”, this should not be tolerated.

Posted by: Johnny | February 4, 2010, 9:15 pm 9:15 pm

GIBBS: “…no briefing is done here or anywhere in this administration where classified information is used in a place where it shouldn’t be.”
Sen. Bond did not accuse the White House of divulging “classified” information. It was “sensitive” information, and not declared as “classified” information (maybe it should have been). Typical of Gibbs to give an answer that is not on point.

Posted by: James Danley | February 4, 2010, 9:44 pm 9:44 pm

“I need you to go out and talk to your friends and talk to your neighbors. I want you to talk to them whether they are independent or whether they are Republican. I want you to argue with them and get in their face,” – Obama
__________________________________
Oh, how terrible!
Posted by: tierra | Feb 4, 2010 8:53:54 PM
I know! Can you imagine if President Bush said something like that? They are still after him for mispronouncing nuclear, which BTW he roasted himself about that. Think Obama would make fun of himself? Doubt it.

Posted by: Live! From DC! It's Saturday Night! | February 4, 2010, 9:49 pm 9:49 pm

Why is Obama still trying to play nice with the Republicans? They have declared outright war against the governmnet of the United States, and Obama had better wake up and smell the coffee.

Posted by: Flash Override | February 4, 2010, 10:14 pm 10:14 pm

The smartest man in the room pronounced, not once but twice, corpsman as corpseman.

Posted by: Axey | February 4, 2010, 10:42 pm 10:42 pm

Flash, any backup for this important rant of yours?

Posted by: News Flash | February 4, 2010, 10:55 pm 10:55 pm

and Obama had better wake up and smell the coffee.
He doesn’t like coffee too much. The Clintons were gonna have him brew it. Seriously, even the Dems are running from this guy. He’s got no clue. Everyone can smell the blood in the water…

Posted by: Chum | February 4, 2010, 11:24 pm 11:24 pm

Kit Bonds nefarious lying record speaks for itself, a self serving hypocritical fraud if there ever was one.

Posted by: XXX | February 5, 2010, 12:02 am 12:02 am

Whenever someone gets too close to the truth, the left gets hyper, as can be seen from the usual suspects on this blog.

Posted by: Quo Warranto | February 5, 2010, 1:47 am 1:47 am

the left gets hyper
Posted by: Quo Warranto
really?..
as opposed to the ‘serene’ ‘right’ exemplified by….
Rush, Boortz, Savage, Beck, Hannity, Coulter, Breitbart, Collins, Bond, McConnell, Bachmann, Fox, Schmidt, Palin……. etc

Posted by: Oh Say, Can You See? | February 5, 2010, 3:23 am 3:23 am

After he apologizes for lying about terrorism, Bond can apologize to Valerie Plame, then he can apologize to the Senate for his 10 month hold on Martha Johnson, which was a naked attempt to extort more pork.

Posted by: Flash Override | February 5, 2010, 6:49 am 6:49 am

Thank you, Senator Bond, for standing up to an administration that has no qualms about disclosing sensitive information. Of course Holder’s show trials in NYC were going to be all about disclosing even more sensitive information, but that doesn’t seem to be working out so well for them now. Aw.

Posted by: ConservativeWoman | February 5, 2010, 8:01 am 8:01 am

The truth is owned by the White House.

Posted by: DontGet818OnMeNow | February 5, 2010, 8:17 am 8:17 am

You will notice that Gibbs actually changed the subject. He didnt say Bond was wrong, only that “no briefing is done here or anywhere in this administration where classified information is used in a place where it shouldn’t be”.
The White House is at fault here and trying to cover their rumps.

Posted by: Mitch in NC | February 5, 2010, 9:29 am 9:29 am

Senator Bond needs to stand his ground. Gibbs and company think they can say anything and people will believe it.

Posted by: wheresmymoney | February 5, 2010, 10:59 am 10:59 am

A long time, honorable and respected senator not facing a new campaign because he is retiring….oh the next few months could be fun seeing what Bond and others decide to say.

Posted by: steve jackson | February 5, 2010, 11:44 am 11:44 am

I’ll point out what has already been pointed out here…Bond didn’t say classified, he said sensitive. Gibbs can say what he did truthfully without really telling us the truth. See how that works?

Posted by: Axey | February 5, 2010, 12:47 pm 12:47 pm

I gave up on Jake for awhile, but now that Obama is floundering publicly, I have renewed hope that Jake is one MSM reporter who is going to man up and speak truth to power. Better late than never. . .

Posted by: Elaina | February 5, 2010, 1:22 pm 1:22 pm

The lesson, as always, is that Liberals LIE:
—Last year, when Republicans criticized the law-enforcement model of counterterrorism adopted by the Obama administration, Attorney General Eric Holder rebutted the argument by claiming that the US had successfully imprisoned 300 terrorists through the federal court system. This came as news to Congress, since the sudden wave of terrorists had escaped their notice, and Senator Jon Kyl asked Holder to supply him with a list of the cases. And to this day, Kyl is….still asking.
Unfortunately, Americans have some experience with Obama officials basing arguments on lists that don’t really exist. Since Holder and Barack Obama claim that we have these men in prison through the federal courts, the names SHOULD BE OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. They have used this argument for nine months, and have yet to provide any proof of its veracity.—(Hot Air)

Posted by: Obama, you LIE, again! | February 5, 2010, 2:21 pm 2:21 pm

“The smartest man in the room pronounced, not once but twice, corpsman as corpseman.”
Posted by: Axey | Feb 4, 2010 10:42:04 PM
This is just after Dear Leader got caught saying “The Middle East Is Obviously An Issue That Has Plagued The Region For Centuries.”

Posted by: Obama: World's Greatest Celebrity | February 5, 2010, 2:39 pm 2:39 pm

Posted by: Axey | Feb 4, 2010 10:42:04 PM”
Hannity speaks…the right wing parrots.
Now I know why FoxNews leads among people who watch news shows 8 hours a day.
You guys NEED FoxNews to tell you waht to think.

Posted by: Ryan C | February 5, 2010, 3:59 pm 3:59 pm

“You guys NEED FoxNews to tell you waht to think.”
Posted by: Ryan C | Feb 5, 2010 3:59:39 PM
This from an idiot who takes his orders from Keith Olbermann.

Posted by: Libs, and the Lying Liars Who Elect Them | February 5, 2010, 4:17 pm 4:17 pm

Sadly but not unexpectedly, theres very very few comments on here that reflect a working knowledge of what the issue is. It appears simply the reflexive manning of battle stations by blog soldiers, with no thought or care as to what is actually at stake or being debated.
Lefty comments: Bond is a poopy head war criminal, Hannity sucks and Obama rulz.
Righty comments: Nom nom nom Obama is stupid.

Posted by: miked | February 5, 2010, 7:51 pm 7:51 pm

Have they already followed the leads from Abdul (even though they are over a month later)? Because I think putting it out there in public that he is “flipping” on the Imam in Yemen might tip the Imam off that he’s become a more wanted man. Also is there going to be protection for the extended family who before and now after the incident seem to be helpful to the US. Again disclosing their further involvement doesn’t exactly help them either. The real question is was it really necessary to disclose what they chose to disclose or on the flip was it really necessary to conceal this for the time being. Not an expert but it just seems waiting a little to act on the intel and cover the bases may have been the better move for a couple of reasons.
Who knows what Bond was told but in the briefing in Congress on Tuesday (before the White House disclosed) he did seem to be indicating concealing the info which would back up his take.

Posted by: GO | February 5, 2010, 10:11 pm 10:11 pm

Just want to thank you Senator Bond for standing up for the IC and for the true Americans in this county. This Administration has yet to show it truly is here for us, by putting our IC out to hang and putting our troops and country in harms way. Thank you for being one of the few to stand up for us. DO NOT APOLOGIZE, you said what had to be said.

Posted by: LM | February 7, 2010, 3:28 pm 3:28 pm

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