Sessions Says a Media Shield Act Could Endanger Troops

by Connie Hair

12/11/2009

The Free Flow of Information Act passed through the Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday by a vote of 14-6, a measure that gives unprecedented protections to media outlets that leak classified information, like, say, the NSA’s terrorist surveillance program revealed by the New York Times or the CIA’s secret terrorist jails revealed by the Washington Post. It also for the first time places some national security decisions under the purview of a federal judge.

Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, again raised red flags about the so-called media shield law, warning that Democrats voted down in committee amendments specifically designed to protect our troops.

“As our troops prepare for a surge in Afghanistan, the majority blocked an amendment to protect the secrecy of troop movements and battle plans,â€