Leaker of U.S. secret documents worked on military base, friend says

[SSG T]

...and it's a certainty that as part of his training, he was fully aware that what he was doing was completely illegal. And warned about foreign actors posing as "friends" to collect intelligence information.

Which means he is either incredibly stupid, or, he knew exactly what he was doing and knew he was conveying information to potential foreign adversaries.

He should not see sunlight for a couple decades.

Yeah, between the training and briefings you receive regarding classifications along with disclosure statements you sign, it's very apparent to anyone with a clearance that you don't do this.

One thing that occurs to me anytime this kind of thing happens, this dude, Manning, Snowden, etc... there are a LOT of people that have zero clue how any of this works, but want to comment on what should or shouldn't happen to said person or why what they did was or wasn't good.

Here's a good summation...regardless of whether something was overclassified or not (as binsfeld mentioned, there is a LOT of overclassification), all uncontrolled release of classified info is bad. There is a review process for adjusting classifications, and it works, but it is time consuming. Release without going through the process causes distrust in the system, causes conspiracy theories to pop up, aside from the actual Intel being released.

99.9% of the time, something is overclassified either because of related Intel or because the person classifying it isn't sure and takes the "better to go to high and lower later" approach. It's rarely because the government is trying to hide something. And most of the stuff that is overclassified, eventually gets a lower classification or is declassified. Again, it's not a quick process, nor should it be.

 

[SSG T]

Oh, and I forgot to mention, there's an actual process for whistle-blowers that works...if the person uses it instead of arbitrarily deciding to release stuff.

 

[Rifler]

Perhaps somebody will finally have to pay the price for breaking the rules,... Not going to hold my breath though,.. never seems to happen.

 

[SSG T]

As an example of what I was talking about with the process.

Let's say someone decides they want to release X. X doesn't look like it means much on it's own, but could be embarrassing to someone, so someone releases it. OK, not a biggie...on the surface.

However, X ties to A/B/C/H/T/Y/W, some of which is TS, some of which is declassified. There's reason for all of that, and a lot of times they're related in some fashion. Heck, within a document, 1 sentence might be TS/SCI, the rest Secret, Conifidential or FOUO (for official use only). So, a review will decide if there is a way to "remove" the TS part, and related info, to release the rest.

The review takes time, because an individual doesn't know ow everything related to the doc, just their specialty. So they look, mark it, pass it on to someone else for review, who does the same. Guess what? Every one of those people have other duties and are busy. It takes time, sometimes weeks, sometimes even years (because situations around the Intel changes, so the review has to adjust).

Release screws everyone associated with that Intel. Going through the process removes the stuff that can be released.

Ex. Both Manning and Snowden released stuff that absolutely had no business being classified. But, they both also released stuff that has no business being out in the public. It wasn't their job to be the sole reviewer.

 

[Mister Hawkeyes]

Perhaps somebody will finally have to pay the price for breaking the rules,... Not going to hold my breath though,.. never seems to happen.

For real. These far right groups have gone past the, "Haha these guys are out of touch and we can point and laugh at them" level and are venturing into a legitimate danger to Democracy.

Think about Jan. 6th for a second. Who got punished for that? It wasn't those who were in power, who orchestrated the whole thing. It was the simple minded, far right Republicans who drank way too much of the Kool-Aid that was given to them by the Trump Administration. Trump and Co. got off scot-free when there should have been serious jail time for such actions.

Now we have a low ranking Air Guard member who also belongs to a far right group (as ridiculous as they might be) who basically just committed Treason AGAINST THE COUNTRY HE IS SERVING.

Things have gone too far. This Airman needs to be punished to the fullest extent and made an example of.

 

[SSG T]

Perhaps somebody will finally have to pay the price for breaking the rules,... Not going to hold my breath though,.. never seems to happen.

Manning was sentenced to 35 years and spent 7 years in custody.

 

[Rifler]

Manning was sentenced to 35 years and spent 7 years in custody.

Julius and Ethel Rosenberg ring a bell?,... we've gone soft.

 

[SSG T]

Julius and Ethel Rosenberg ring a bell?,... we've gone soft.

Levels. What Manning and Snowden did didn't rise to the level the Rosenbergs did. To be honest, what the Rosenbergs did didn't rise to the level they were punished for, especially Ethel.

 

[DeangeloVickers]

I am not left. The Republican Party supports the Ukraine War. Independents support it as well. So does the Democratic Party. ONLY MAGA doesn't. What does that make you?

Someone not brainwashed enough to blindly support everything "my party" tells me to. As a father of soon to be 2 military aged sons, and relatives of quite a few military enlisted members, I pray we stay as far away from military conflict as possible. Have we not learned from the past?

 

[Rifler]

Levels. What Manning and Snowden did didn't rise to the level the Rosenbergs did. To be honest, what the Rosenbergs did didn't rise to the level they were punished for, especially Ethel.

Understand that,.. but we need to get back to where having a clearance isn't just perceived as cool.

 

[DeangeloVickers]

Dude....we're eliminating the main army of our geopolitical rival for a TINY FRACTION of our defense budget, with zero soldiers committed.

Wake TF Up!!!!

Unfortunately none of this is true which is a big part of what this leak exposed. I can't believe this what the American left has become. I used to be 100% on your side on these issues bc you stood for peace, less military involvement outside our borders not more, and transparency over secrecy.

 

[Joes Place]

Unfortunately none of this is true

It's 100% true.

 

[NorthDSMHawk]

Execute him along with these two traitorous scumbags. Send a message.

A wife and husband from Maryland have been charged with conspiring to provide the Russian government with personal medical records from the US government and military, according to a newly unsealed federal indictment.

Anna Gabrielian, an anesthesiologist practicing in Baltimore, along with her husband, Jamie Lee Henry, a major and doctor in the US Army, allegedly provided “individually identifiable health information,” which is protected under federal law, to an FBI undercover agent posing as a Russian government employee.

Both Gabrielian and Henry were arrested Thursday morning, according to the US Attorney’s office in the District of Maryland. After appearing in court, they were released on home detention with 24/7 location monitoring. Gabrielian also has a $500,000 unsecured bond.

According to the indictment, Gabrielian was contacted by the undercover agent – who claimed to be an employee of the Russian embassy – in August, after Gabrielian had reached out to the Russian embassy to offer her and her husband’s assistance to the Russian government several months earlier.

CNN is reaching out to the defendants. No attorneys have been listed in court records.

During a meeting with the undercover agent in a Baltimore hotel, according to the indictment, Gabrielian said she was “motivated by patriotism toward Russia” and wanted to provide assistance even if it meant risking jail time. She also allegedly told the undercover agent that her husband could provide information on how the US military sets up hospitals during war and on training provided to the Ukrainian military, and warned that any information they pulled needed to be “massively important” due to the risk of being uncovered.

In a separate meeting, Henry claimed to have “looked into volunteering to join the Russian Army after the conflict in Ukraine began,” but didn’t have the necessary combat experience, according to the indictment. Henry has a “Secret” level security clearance, the indictment says.

Gabrielian and Henry both suggested that they provide the undercover agent with medical information from members of the US military and their families from Fort Bragg, where Henry was stationed as a staff internist, as well as from the medical institution where Gabrielian worked in Baltimore, the indictment alleges.

Henry, the indictment says, provided to the undercover agent during an August meeting the health records of a US Army officer, Department of Defense employee, and the spouses of three Army veterans, two of whom are deceased. The indictment also alleges that Gabrielian conspired to provide the medical information of “the spouse of a government employee and military veteran.”

Gabrielian also made plans for her, her husband and their children to flee to Turkey and gave a cover story to the undercover agent to explain their communications, according to the indictment.

“I don’t want to end in jail here with my kids being hostages over my head,” she allegedly told the undercover agent.

In another meeting, Gabrielian allegedly told the undercover agent that her husband was a “coward” and was worried about violating HIPAA - the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.

She also recommended Henry read a book from the 1980s about how Russian spies were trained and recruited during the Soviet Union in order to prepare, according to the indictment.

“Because it’s the mentality of sacrificing everything,” Gabrielian allegedly told the undercover agent about recommending the book, “and loyalty in you from day one. That’s not something you walked away from.”

Henry told the undercover agent that if the US were to declare war against Russia, “at that point, I’ll have some ethical issues I have to work through,” according to the indictment.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/29/poli...russian-government-medical-records/index.html

 

[Obviously Oblivious]

Unfortunately none of this is true which is a big part of what this leak exposed. I can't believe this what the American left has become. I used to be 100% on your side on these issues bc you stood for peace, less military involvement outside our borders not more, and transparency over secrecy.

What part of Joe’s quote below isn't true? You'd rather we sit idly by like a dove while the world's pre-eminent fascist threat to democracy runs roughshod in NATO's backyard? Who exactly is responsible for this war?

Dude....we're eliminating the main army of our geopolitical rival (substantially true) for a TINY FRACTION of our defense budget (true, US value of support through February 2023 is equivalent to less than 1% of the DOD's annual appropriations) with zero soldiers committed. <The only arguable point, we are supporting the Ukraine effort with US military personnel in neighboring countries close to the action, but largely outside of the borders of Ukraine>

Wake TF Up!!!!

 

[DeangeloVickers]

What part of Joel's quote below isn't true? You'd rather we sit idly by like a dove while the world's pre-eminent fascist threat to democracy runs roughshod in NATO's backyard? Who exactly is responsible for this war?

Dude....we're eliminating the main army of our geopolitical rival (substantially true) for a TINY FRACTION of our defense budget (true, US value of support through February 2023 is equivalent to less than 1% of the DOD's annual appropriations) with zero soldiers committed. <The only arguable point, we are supporting the Ukraine effort with US military personnel in neighboring countries close to the action, but largely outside of the borders of Ukraine>

Wake TF Up!!!!

Do you really think we are "eliminating the main army" of Russia? Really? And do we think a country run by a mad man with a significant nuclear arsenal is going to let that happen? If at some point, and it's a huge if, Russian forces were being beaten so badly that his army was close to being "eliminated", wtf do you think he's going to do? Retreat and surrender? No fuxking way. GD I just can't fathom how you've all turned into fuxking war hawks bc its "Putin". There's always going to be a handful
of "Putin's". But now we're back to playing world's police force, dicking around in other countries forcing regime changes again.
And yeah, part 2 is incorrect as well, we have special forces on the ground in Ukraine and likely have for some time.

 

[McLovin32]

But now we're back to playing world's police force, dicking around in other countries forcing regime changes again.

I mean, did we ever stop doing this?

 

[Joes Place]

Do you really think we are "eliminating the main army" of Russia?

Yes. Go read the numbers. They'll be set back at least a decade.

 

[DeangeloVickers]

I mean, did we ever stop doing this?

The left sure wasn't cheering it on when Bush 1 and 2 were doing it, quite the opposite. And rightfully so. If the left isn't going to stand for peace who the hell is? The neocons sure as hell won't.

 

[DeangeloVickers]

Yes. Go read the numbers. They'll be set back at least a decade.

Goalpost moving initiated.

 

[FlickShagwell]

Hmmm…I’ll wait for the video.

It can only be a minuscule chance - million to one type of deal - that a guy who talks about guns and overthrowing the government on a discord chat with other rightwing conspiracy nuts might let a racial slur fly. Practically unheard of. Better odds of being struck by lightning than something like that happening, bins thinks!

 

[FlickShagwell]

The left sure wasn't cheering it on when Bush 1 and 2 were doing it, quite the opposite. And rightfully so. If the left isn't going to stand for peace who the hell is? The neocons sure as hell won't.

Why is you deflecting and whatabouting a rightwing racist conspiracy nut secret-spilling traitor the second least surprising thing in the world after that same rightwing racist conspiracy nut secret-spilling traitor also being a racist?

 

[McLovin32]

The left sure wasn't cheering it on when Bush 1 and 2 were doing it, quite the opposite. And rightfully so. If the left isn't going to stand for peace who the hell is? The neocons sure as hell won't.

Comparing what Bush 1 and 2 did to what’s going on in Ukraine isn’t exactly the same my man.

 

[lucas80]

i love the part where he says he won't identify his friend. (1) yeah right (2) you probably already did fella.

The tough guys always say that when it's NPR or the WaPo asking you for a name. When it's a suit with a badge they turn the name over pretty quickly.

 

[lucas80]

My first question as well. A lot of heads should roll.

THIS is the kind of thing the House should spend its time on, not Hunter and Twitter.

This, but, they won't. This is a legitimate use of oversight powers. This is in the national interest. Instead the House will keep after trans kids, Hunter's laptop, and Alvin Bragg.

 

[Joes Place]

The left sure wasn't cheering it on when Bush 1 and 2 were doing it, quite the opposite.

They got us into "shooting wars" where we deployed thousands of soldiers.

I'd say that's pretty different. But you probably wouldn't understand.

 

[Joes Place]

Goalpost moving initiated.

Yes, you are indeed sending the goalposts to an entirely other planet here.
We can see that.

 

[Joes Place]

...Well...."the Libs" are against Russia and against authoritarianism.
So, naturally, the "populist GOP" must, by default, be FOR those things...

 

[Formerly Rockymtnole]

Yeah, between the training and briefings you receive regarding classifications along with disclosure statements you sign, it's very apparent to anyone with a clearance that you don't do this.

One thing that occurs to me anytime this kind of thing happens, this dude, Manning, Snowden, etc... there are a LOT of people that have zero clue how any of this works, but want to comment on what should or shouldn't happen to said person or why what they did was or wasn't good.

Here's a good summation...regardless of whether something was overclassified or not (as binsfeld mentioned, there is a LOT of overclassification), all uncontrolled release of classified info is bad. There is a review process for adjusting classifications, and it works, but it is time consuming. Release without going through the process causes distrust in the system, causes conspiracy theories to pop up, aside from the actual Intel being released.

99.9% of the time, something is overclassified either because of related Intel or because the person classifying it isn't sure and takes the "better to go to high and lower later" approach. It's rarely because the government is trying to hide something. And most of the stuff that is overclassified, eventually gets a lower classification or is declassified. Again, it's not a quick process, nor should it be.

I get all that, I guess.

I still do not understand why a 21 year old National Guardsman who lives in his mom’s basement and on gamer chat boards had access to such a wide-ranging trove of classified information. I don’t care what job the kid had, seems like the military does a piss-poor job managing need to know.

 

[SSG T]

I get all that, I guess.

I still do not understand why a 21 year old National Guardsman who lives in his mom’s basement and on gamer chat boards had access to such a wide-ranging trove of classified information. I don’t care what job the kid had, seems like the military does a piss-poor job managing need to know.

If his job required it, he passed the background check (quite possibly TS), and he had a need to know, he had access. Age has nothing to do with it. Job requirement drives access. If you don't have the required clearance, you don't get to stay in the job and you lose your clearance.

I know people younger than that in the Iowa National Guard that have TS clearances. Their MOS and job requires that clearance and they pass the checks.

My biggest problem with all of it, in general but he certainly meets this, is that the military doesn't take RW extremism seriously. And it's been brought up in official briefings since at least Ruby Ridge and Waco. But they pay lip service to it.

 

[Formerly Rockymtnole]

If his job required it, he passed the background check (quite possibly TS), and he had a need to know, he had access. Age has nothing to do with it. Job requirement drives access. If you don't have the required clearance, you don't get to stay in the job and you lose your clearance.

I know people younger than that in the Iowa National Guard that have TS clearances. Their MOS and job requires that clearance and they pass the checks.

My biggest problem with all of it, in general but he certainly meets this, is that the military doesn't take RW extremism seriously. And it's been brought up in official briefings since at least Ruby Ridge and Waco. But they pay lip service to it.

Ok, forget about the age.
Is there a need for a Mass Air Guard member of any age or rank to have classified info on all these topics? From Ukraine to Taiwan to spying on allies to everything in between? Your average company has better controls.

 

[SSG T]

Understand that,.. but we need to get back to where having a clearance isn't just perceived as cool.

I don't know anyone who thought it was cool. Everyone thinks it's a pain in the ass. The background checks are intrusive and time consuming (although the eQuip system has made it a little easier), maintaining it can be a pain and following all of the requirements for security of the documents/info is worse.

People who think it's cool would generally be everyone who's a security risk, most of them intentional security risks. Fortunately, there aren't many of those people around. When you compare the number of people with S/TS clearances, the # people like this dude are very, very small.

 

[SSG T]

Ok, forget about the age.
Is there a need for a Mass Air Guard member of any age or rank to have classified info on all these topics? From Ukraine to Taiwan to spying on allies to everything in between? Your average company has better controls.

I don't know the requirements for whatever unit he's in. However, yes, it is quite likely that there are ARNG Intel units that require this kind information. There are a LOT of ARNG units that support AC elements, especially Brigade level or higher.

It wouldn't surprise me if the Intel units in Iowa have a need to know for this. Remember, Kosovo is our sister state, they are really f-ing close to both Russia and Ukraine.

Also, generally, everyone in an Intel unit has either a Secret or TS clearance. But not everyone in the unit has the same need to know. That would depend on job and section.

In short, yes, it is quite likely his job required he had access to this info. And yes, that's how most leaks occur. It isn't people stealing info they didn't have access to, it's people sharing info they did have access to. Insider threat is easily the biggest issue when it comes to this.

 

[Formerly Rockymtnole]

I don't know the requirements for whatever unit he's in. However, yes, it is quite likely that there are ARNG Intel units that require this kind information. There are a LOT of ARNG units that support AC elements, especially Brigade level or higher.

It wouldn't surprise me if the Intel units in Iowa have a need to know for this. Remember, Kosovo is our sister state, they are really f-ing close to both Russia and Ukraine.

Also, generally, everyone in an Intel unit has either a Secret or TS clearance. But not everyone in the unit has the same need to know. That would depend on job and section.

In short, yes, it is quite likely his job required he had access to this info. And yes, that's how most leaks occur. It isn't people stealing info they didn't have access to, it's people sharing info they did have access to. Insider threat is easily the biggest issue when it comes to this.

I guess that’s my point. You keep telling me “what is” and my point is that the “what is” is the problem.

Clearly the military has no effective safeguards or controls for managing classified info if something like this can happen. It could be happening today and we don’t have a clue. I suppose the lesson is assume the Chinese and the other sophisticated bad actors have access to tons of classified info.

 

[SSG T]

I guess that’s my point. You keep telling me “what is” and my point is that the “what is” is the problem.

Clearly the military has no effective safeguards or controls for managing classified info if something like this can happen. It could be happening today and we don’t have a clue. I suppose the lesson is assume the Chinese and the other sophisticated bad actors have access to tons of classified info.

There are effective safeguards. It's not like this happens all the time. Given how much classified info there is, how often it's accessed and how many sites there are, this is extremely rare. You hear of pretty much every leak. Classified docs are handled thousands of times a day.

I mean, there are relatively minor issues quite a bit, such as using the wrong printer when copying a document, but overall, the stuff is extremely secure. There is zero chance of eliminating every leak. It's not possible. But we do a really good job of handling it.

 

[DeangeloVickers]

Comparing what Bush 1 and 2 did to what’s going on in Ukraine isn’t exactly the same my man.

Referring specifically to regime changes, international government interference etc... the table for the armed conflict in Ukraine was set years ago partly due to our meddling. You know the stuff you'd normally be against.

 

[DeangeloVickers]

Why is you deflecting and whatabouting a rightwing racist conspiracy nut secret-spilling traitor the second least surprising thing in the world after that same rightwing racist conspiracy nut secret-spilling traitor also being a racist?

Bc you're a brainwashed partisan little bitch?

 

[FlickShagwell]

Bc you're a brainwashed partisan little bitch?

Look guys! The guy desperately carrying water for Vladimir Putin is calling anyone else a bitch!

 

[Joes Place]

Referring specifically to regime changes, international government interference etc... the table for the armed conflict in Ukraine was set years ago partly due to our meddling.

Not at all.

Conflict was inevitable due to our cozying up to the dictatorship in Russia.

 

[SSG T]

Not at all.

Conflict was inevitable due to the GOP's cozying up to the dictatorship in Russia.

 

[DeangeloVickers]

Look guys! The guy desperately carrying water for Vladimir Putin is calling anyone else a bitch!

Carrying Putin's water? Are you fricking high? Read my posts before typing more emotional dumb shit.