Hoekstra: Assange should face punishment – Online Athens

The United States may soon have the opportunity to request the extradition of WikiLeaks leader Julian Assange to its shores, which would allow criminal proceedings against him to finally begin.

Given his focused mission to cause momentous damage to the United States by disclosing secret and highly classified information, prosecution would be totally justified.

Lets put this in context.

I am a strong supporter of exposing government corruption and wrongdoing. I also believe whistleblowers are the appropriate mechanism of last resort for accomplishing that goal.

But theres a process whistleblowers must follow. It may not be perfect, but it allows abuses to be identified without compromising national security interests.

Whistleblowers in the intelligence community, including those working in the Defense Intelligence Agency, National Security Agency and the Central Intelligence Agency, have such paths outlined in a precise manner.

The process allows for the exposure of corruption while protecting classified information and ensuring that whistleblowers do not face retaliation. This is a balanced approach that protects all parties.

Those who operate outside of the process Chelsea Manning, Edward Snowden, the recent leakers at the CIA and those who leaked the information on former National Security Adviser Mike Flynn are criminals. They broke the law and blatantly ignored the avenues established for whistleblowers.

Manning was accordingly charged and convicted. Snowden, still hiding abroad, should be tried and convicted. The more recent leakers must be, too.

These leakers all assumed roles well beyond their job descriptions. They perceived themselves as singularly possessing the authority and the judgment to determine right and wrong and, in turn, jeopardized the security of the country not to mention their colleagues.

Assange is no different. While he may not have actually physically stolen information, Assange has claimed possession of stolen materials and published them for the world to see. His public comments and actions clearly outline his motives and desire to fundamentally damage the West, the United States in particular.

There will be thousands of pages of legal debate written about Assange. The back-and-forth will focus on whether his actions constitute a new type of newsgathering and are thereby sheltered free speech.

Theyre clearly not, though, and he ought to be tried and found guilty.

Moving forward, Congress must strengthen whistleblower protections, direct our intelligence agencies to better secure sensitive and classified data, and put in place a modern legal framework to prosecute those who leak and make available classified information. These measures will ultimately protect the United States and its citizens from traitors and individuals seeking its demise.

A former chairman of the U.S. House intelligence committee, Pete Hoekstra is a senior fellow at the Investigative Project on Terrorism.

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Hoekstra: Assange should face punishment - Online Athens