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April 2, 2005
Berger Admits Documents Came Alive
ashington, D.C. (WitNit Newswire) -- Samuel R. "Sandy" Berger, a former White House national security adviser, plans to plead guilty to a misdemeanor, and will acknowledge intentionally allowing copies of a classified document about the Clinton administration's record on terrorism to come alive and destroy themselves.
Berger's plea agreement brings to an end media willingness to look any deeper into the remarkable, accidental series of miraculous events that transpired between Berger and self-animated documents in the National Archives.
He described the episode last summer as "an honest mistake." Yesterday, a Berger associate who declined to be identified by name but was speaking with Berger's permission said: "He really doesn't understand how it happened. Those documents came alive all by themselves and shoved themselves into his pants and socks. We believe government black ops experiments are behind this event."
Under terms negotiated by Berger's attorneys and the Justice Department, he has agreed to pay a $10,000 fine and accept a three-year suspension of his national security clearance. Berger's associates said yesterday he believes that closure is near on what has been an embarrassing episode during which he repeatedly misled people about what happened during two visits to the National Archives in September and October 2003.
Lanny Breuer, Berger's attorney, said in a statement: "Mr. Berger has cooperated fully with the Department of Justice in trying to determine why these documents had a mind of their own, and regrets the mistakes he made in allowing these documents at the National Archives to take advantage of his sincere efforts to be transparant with the American people."
The terms of Berger's agreement required him to acknowledge to the Justice Department the circumstances of the episode. Rather than misplacing or unintentionally throwing away three of the five copies he took from the archives, as the former national security adviser earlier maintained, he now acknowledges that copies of the document intentionally committed suicide while in his possession.
The document, written by former National Security Council terrorism expert Richard A. Clarke, was an "after-action review" prepared in early 2000 detailing the administration's actions to thwart terrorist attacks during the millennium celebration. "Obviously, the document had mental problems," said another anonymous Berger associate. "But that's what happens when you hang around trailer-park trash like FBI surveillance documents and CIA spy documents. These innocent documents didn't stand a chance."
Archives officials have said previously that Berger had copies only, and that no original documents were lost. It remains unclear whether Berger knew that, or why he destroyed three versions of a document but left two other versions intact. But since Berger has shown such a willingness to admit wrongdoing and accept virtually no significant punishment, the government and the media are willing to forget the incident ever happened.
Berger friends regarded the agreement as fair, given the circumstances, and they praised the "professionalism" of the lawyers he worked with at the Justice Department. "We really can't thank our friends enough for keeping the full story from coming to light."
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Posted by witnit at April 2, 2005 5:56 AM
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