Page 17 - Declassification Authority News Today

>> who is deciding what is classified and what isnt in terms of whats released to this committee? >> we are following the existing guidelines. >> who is deciding? >> we are following the existing guidelines. >> who is we? >> i have chosen to follow the guidelines that exist. >> you are making the classification decisions about what materials should be released to this committee? >> i am electing not to make an exception for myself but i am adhering to existing rdi guidelines. if i may just -- >>...

Hold ourselves to. >> will you please answer the question? >> senator, i think ive answered the question. >> youve not. do you believe the previous techniques now armed with hindsight, do you believe they were immoral? yes or no? >> senator, i believe that we should hold ourselves to the moral standard outlined in the army field manual. >> okay. so i understand that you have not answered the question, but im going to move on. so i understand that you from previous answers are serving as the auth...

Didnt change his view. he was wrong and issued a correction. >> who is deciding whats classified and what isnt in terms of whats released to the committee? >> senator, were following the existing guidelines. >> who is deciding? >> we are following the existing -- >> who is we? >> well, i have chosen to follow the guidelines that exist -- >> you are making the classification decisions about what materials should be released to the committee? >> im electing not to make an exception for myself, but...

Guidelines that exist at cia, and there is another declassification authority. its called the iro. i have not interfered -- >> you believe you have the authority to recuse yourself? >> ill take that for the record. i may have the authority to recuse myself. im not a lawyer. im not sure about that. >> assuming you do, and i believe you do? will you agree to recuse yourself from the responsibility and the authority of making decisions about what cia information about you and your record will be cl...

>> no, senator, i explained that mr. rodriguez wanted to get resolution on the issue and that he was planning to have a conversation with the director about it. and he needed to have revalidation of those two points. >> you drafted the cable. is that correct? >> yes. at his request. >> is it common practice when a cable is drafted its copied to various parts of the legal establishment within the cia and was that done in this case? was that cable copied to mr. rizzo or other lawyers within the ag...

>> he feels hes on the righteous side and hes the smartest guy in the room. when it comes to the memos, you want to compare those memos. also -- compare them to what hes actually said in these interviews, what hes done. we dont know that, it hears the other thing. he claims he handed out, gave out the d classifying, the declassification authority but he sitting with the president who is a higher classification authority, and executive privilege and he signed the paper when he became fbi director...

House in order to vote that memo out and in order to override the presidents declassification authority. >> jon: why would democrats want to do that? one of their complaints about the then imminent release of the republican version -- the republican memo is that it would reveal sources and methods. if youre saying that your understanding is this one goes into even more depth, why? >> i think that john roberts hit it on the head before me. the fact that the democrats are eager to have the preside...

To get an a. i think what he fails to appreciate or maybe he just is incapable of, is that by releasing this memo, that by itself is, i believe, an obstruction of justice. if he doesnt believe his national security team that its inaccurate and not confidential, he should fire them. but obviously he keeps them in place, so he must believe what theyre saying, so its misleading, so its intentionally damaging to american security, but im going to release it anyway because i know its going to do dama...

-- now were getting somewhere. we you know who did it. i understand it is classified, but you know president trump could make it unclassified like that. you can tell me who ordered it. lets hope he does that. >> the president does have that kind of declassification authority. i have suggested that some members, leaders of the intelligence community, might want to make some kind of public statements, but i understand the reluctance of them and particularly president trump as well, because this ki...

Okay. i understand it is classified, but you know president trump could make it unclassified like that. boom. he could say it is not classified anymore, and then you can tell me who ordered it. lets hope he does that. >> the president does have that kind of declassification authority. i have suggested that some members, leaders of the intelligence community, might want to make some kind of public statement, but i understand the reluctance of them and particularly president trump as well, because...