The Moderate Voice - Latest Comments in NBC BREAKING NEWS: Two Fired Due to Obama Passport File Breach (UPDATED)

Re: NBC BREAKING NEWS: Two Fired Due to Obama Passport File Breach (UPDATED)

Idiosyncrat — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 12:18:02 -0000

"BREAKING NEWS
NBC News and news services
updated 2 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - The passport files of the three major presidential candidates have all been breached, officials said Friday."

Re: NBC BREAKING NEWS: Two Fired Due to Obama Passport File Breach (UPDATED)

superdestroyer — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 11:40:48 -0000

Even though they threatened to fire people who had no need to know when they accessed computerized passsport records, what would any organzation do to keep people out. UCLA Medical Center had to fire 13 people to peeked at Britney Spears's medical records.

As more records are put on line, more people will give into temptation and peek at people's records.

Of course, Senator Obama does not believe that government organizations like the Social Security Administration should investigate misuse of social security number or identity theft. Senator Obama does not believe that the IRS should investigate tax returns of people without legitimate identifies. So I feel little compassion that Senator Obama had his own records abused.

Re: NBC BREAKING NEWS: Two Fired Due to Obama Passport File Breach (UPDATED)

StockBoySF — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 10:56:21 -0000

I don't know if Obama's records were accessed by Bush supporters for political purposes or not. At the very least, and regardless of who accessed the records for whatever reason, this shows mismanagement. And certainly government mismanagement is epidemic in this administration. The only reason this got out is that it involved a high profile individual.

Until the full story is known as to who and why the records were accessed, we shouldn't blow this up into a huge political issue- unless the facts support it.

Re: NBC BREAKING NEWS: Two Fired Due to Obama Passport File Breach (UPDATED)

kritt11 — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 09:45:33 -0000

George- I'd say the Bush administration is usually both. The intent is usually malevolent, but the maneuver is usually handled incompetently, as with the US atty scandal.

Re: NBC BREAKING NEWS: Two Fired Due to Obama Passport File Breach (UPDATED)

kritt11 — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 09:44:09 -0000

SD- Nice way to change the subject from the politicization of a US agency for use in dirty campaign tricks to the loss of privacy for all US citizens.

Re: NBC BREAKING NEWS: Two Fired Due to Obama Passport File Breach (UPDATED)

GeorgeSorwell — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 07:56:59 -0000

Malevolence or incompetence?

It's hard to say, this being the Bush Administration.

Re: NBC BREAKING NEWS: Two Fired Due to Obama Passport File Breach (UPDATED)

superdestroyer — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 05:43:56 -0000

Before the Obama supporters start screaming about notification of loss of privacy, they may want to think about the refusal of the social security administration and the internal revenue service refusals to notify normal citizens if employment or tax records are submitted using their social security numbers or identity.

If the Democrats are going to get excited about Senator Obama's loss of privacy, it would be nice and less hypocritical if they demonstrated the same concern for everyone else. However, my guess is that sucking up to ilegal immigrants rates as more important than caring about the privacy of common citizens.

Re: NBC BREAKING NEWS: Two Fired Due to Obama Passport File Breach (UPDATED)

kritt11 — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 00:55:21 -0000

It does seem too coincidental. Especially when the same type of security breach happened with Bill Clinton's passport in the '90's when he was running against Bush Sr. Could be Republican dirty tricks.

Re: NBC BREAKING NEWS: Two Fired Due to Obama Passport File Breach (UPDATED)

vwcat — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 22:38:38 -0000

TPM reports that the first happened the day after the NH primary. The second on the day of the Texas debate and the third the day the Wright story broke.
Seems very coincidental. I am not much for conspiracy theories, thinking them rather silly but, who's to say it was not oppo research by the gop or even the Clintons.
It's just too pat and feels fishy.

Re: NBC BREAKING NEWS: Two Fired Due to Obama Passport File Breach (UPDATED)

StockBoySF — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 22:20:33 -0000

We don't know at this point whether his files were accessed for political purposes or not, but if we assume that there was no political purpose, that the files were accessed out of curiosity, there is a delay in letting Obama know that his right to privacy had been breached.

We've all heard that many competent life long government employees have left (or been forced out) of civil service due to Bush's mismanagement of government. This is a perfect example of that incompetence. State Department management should have made their expectations clear- that when there is a breach of privacy, especially of a presidential front runner, then that breach of privacy should be reported up through the chain.

So even if there wasn't a nefarious political purpose behind it, ultimately this shows the Bush administration's incompetence.

That said, let's not blow it out of proportion.