Democrats and Spies

[OverdueSpy]

This is plagarized from several sources, but it gets the point across.

The California Asian Pacific Islander Caucus – comprised entirely of Democrat elected officials – was prepared to honor former accused spy Wen Ho Lee with a "profile in courage" award.

The ceremony has since been cancelled due to volunimous potestations form members of Moving America Forward.

At a time when left-leaning politicians cannot find any words of praise for our brave troops fighting the War on Terrorism, it is astonishing to see that they have no problems honoring an individual who at the very best copied scores of classified material and U.S. secrets. Evidence still suggests Lee may have been involved with espionage activities to benefit China.

Dang! I wish I had thought up that statement.

Lee pleaded guilty to a single felony of using an unclassified, unsecure computer to download "information related to the national defense."

He and a large band of supporters, many of them from the Bay Area, claimed the government pursued him simply because he was a Chinese American.

Lee's ethnicity did fuel investigations of him by U.S. Energy Department counterintelligence agents and the FBI, but so did his copying of an extraordinary amount of nuclear weapons software to portable tapes.

He offered a persuasive account of throwing his tapes, containing what federal prosecutors called the "crown jewels" of the U.S. nuclear weapons program, into a Dumpster, which then was emptied into a landfill.

The Dumpster's contents were buried in one of two locations. An FBI team unearthed the shallowest garbage heap and found nothing. Verifying the deeper home of the "crown jewels" would, by FBI estimates, have cost at least $45 million, and it was never dug up.

Lee never persuasively explained his need for the tapes, and his case ended in uncertainty.

And the Democrats still have the audacity to claim that their party is better for America, where national defense is concerned. Oh well this is just one more example of how Democrats speak out of both sides of their mouths. IMHO

[jehnx]

And this post is another example of one-sided arguing to make Democrats look bad. A further look into the facts shows two interesting things:

1) This small caucus of representatives from only five cities in California is obviously not representative of all Democrats, nor would it be for all Republicans were that their party affiliation, and

2) He was never even convicted.

Take a look at this site: http://209.157.64.200/focus/f-news/1147615/posts

Here are some excerpts you obviously didn't pay any attention to:

"Asian lawmakers from the Bay Area and Southern California said Thursday their small caucus in the Legislature will honor former accused spy Wen Ho Lee..."

"'There really was very little substantiation to, especially the more serious, charges about him being a spy," Chan said.'"

"He never was charged with stealing nuclear secrets for China, although that was the gist of news coverage of his case for almost two years."

"The most serious charges against Lee -- 39 counts of copying secrets with intent to aid an unnamed country or harm the national security of the United States, all punishable by up to life in prison -- were dropped in September 2000."

Now, even besides those, you should head over to www.wenholee.org where you can read the Judge's apology to Dr. Lee!!! Seriously, this argument is completely dead and will go nowhere. He was not convicted of the charges, and is now being honored for taking it like a man while they accused him of many things he, it turns out, probably did not even do, which makes perfect sense.

[cheyenne1212]

And this post is another example of one-sided arguing to make Democrats look bad

Not all democrats look bad, but if I was a democrat I sure would be embarassed of Gore. Especially his past speaches where he started his famous yelling. lol

"HE BETRAYED US!!!! HE PLAYED ON OUR FEARS!!!!!"

:0


Anyway this has nothing to do with the above post really, I just wanted to through that in. lol

[Cybr1d]

No offense, but I don't think it takes too much to make the Democrats look bad....one case mentioned above by cheyenne....dont forget Ted Kennedy, the clintons, Kussinich *spelling?*, Al Sharpton, and John FlipFlop Kerry.

[RoadClosed]

No matter what the spin, they support a spy who sold secrets probably in the hands of Pakistan and others. If they are not representative of the party, denounce them in public. Don't defend it.

[jehnx]

You're making another mistake that has been made already before, RoadClosed.

"they support a spy who sold secrets probably in the hands of Pakistan and others"

Innocent until proven guilty is oftentimes forgotten by people.

[MURACU]

former accused spy Wen Ho Lee USED an unclassified, unsecure computer to download the "crown jewels" of the U.S. nuclear weapons program.

Anyone see the mistake?

[RoadClosed]

All right I guess the alternative is, everyone lied. He's just an inoccent man. Give him a medal.

The dude plead quilty to downloading information related to national defence. Who cares if it was an unlcassified terminal. He was poking around got caught and got LUCKY.

[MURACU]

First as far as I can see he was accused but not found guilty of spying. True he down loaded sensitive material but I have problems beliveing it was the crown jewels of americain nuclaire research.
Secondly the article is fairly obiviously pro republicain and as such its only reason for existing is to try and cause a scandel before the elections.
thirdly Overdue gives different parts of what I assume is one artical but does not give a link to it and doesnt give the whole artical. It is too easy to edit something to give it the slant you want.

[OverdueSpy]

Originally posted here by jehnx
And this post is another example of one-sided arguing to make Democrats look bad.

Errr...... What other kind of argument is there? If I could successfully argue the both sides of an argument and always be correct, then I could create my own political party. I know! I will call my new party the Supremian Party and my symbol will be a blue-eyed, blonde-haired Nazi superimposed over a Swastika (sp).

1) This small caucus of representatives from only five cities in California is obviously not representative of all Democrats, nor would it be for all Republicans were that their party affiliation,

Ok not all, I would say most though. IMHO

2) He was never even convicted.

Take a look at this site: http://209.157.64.200/focus/f-news/1147615/posts

Yes, he was. See the part in your referenced artile: "Lee pleaded guilty to a single felony of using an unclassified, unsecure computer to download "information related to the national defense."

Here are some excerpts you obviously didn't pay any attention to:

"Asian lawmakers from the Bay Area and Southern California said Thursday their small caucus in the Legislature will honor former accused spy Wen Ho Lee..."

"'There really was very little substantiation to, especially the more serious, charges about him being a spy," Chan said.'"

"He never was charged with stealing nuclear secrets for China, although that was the gist of news coverage of his case for almost two years."

This is simply more Liberal propaganda, following the belief that if we say it loud enough and long enough, people will forget the truth. He was charged on 59 counts.

"The most serious charges against Lee -- 39 counts of copying secrets with intent to aid an unnamed country or harm the national security of the United States, all punishable by up to life in prison -- were dropped in September 2000."

He was convicted. In the United States, pleading guilty to a Felony results in a conviction. Hmmm.... Wonder if this is why the www.wenholee.org site is demanding a pardon from the President.

Now, even besides those, you should head over to www.wenholee.org where you can read the Judge's apology to Dr. Lee!!! Seriously, this argument is completely dead and will go nowhere. He was not convicted of the charges, and is now being honored for taking it like a man while they accused him of many things he, it turns out, probably did not even do, which makes perfect sense.

The plea-bargain was the reason that he was prosecuted for only 1 charge. Can't find my link to this particular reference but it is common knowledge throughout most articles referencing Lee's conviction.

"On Sept. 13, prosecutors dropped 58 of 59 felony counts against Lee, and a federal judge sentenced him to the nine months he had already served in jail while awaiting trial. In return for his freedom, he promised to cooperate with the government's effort to determine what happened to the cassette tapes, which contained test data and design information on U.S. nuclear weapons."

Also, I think you are confused about the intent of the Judges apology. The first 3 sentences from the article that you reference: "Dr. Lee, you have pled guilty to a serious crime. It's a felony offense. For that, you deserved to be punished." The Judge was apologizing for Mr. Lee being denied bail and being imprisoned prior to his trial. Pre-trial imprisonment is based upon the individuals likelyhood to flee. Now let's see.....Ties to foreign governments, accused of stealing and passing Nuclear secrets to foreign governments, it's easy to apply for asylum at a foreign embassy located in the U.S. Yeah, I would call him a risk to pre-trial flight.

Also there was an issue with the Clinton administration in conjunction with the Department of Justice where a wiretap was denied in the Lee case. http://www.mediaresearch.org/cyberal...b19990409a.asp

The FBI requested a wiretap on [alleged nuclear weapons spy Wen Ho] Lee. Justice denied it, arguing it did not have sufficient grounds to take to a federal court to get the tap approved. But a look at the Justice Department's record on wiretaps calls that argument into serious question. From 1993 to 1997, federal officials requested 2,686 wiretaps. For all its concern for probable cause and legal standards, the Justice Department turned down one request in those four years -- Lee's in 1996." -- Investor’s Business Daily editorial, March 30.

<EDIT> Forgot to put in my comment: Why would the Clinton Administration deny this wiretap request? I smell collusion, big time. I just love the cover ups.

Finally this little excerpt: http://nucnews.net/nucnews/2000nn/00...01201nn.htm#14

"Former Los Alamos physicist Wen Ho Lee has told investigators that he threw portable tapes containing nuclear secrets into a trash bin outside the weapons laboratory in January 1999, shortly after his security clearance was revoked."
"December 1998, he admitted for the first time that he had been asked about classified subjects during a private meeting with Chinese scientists in a Beijing hotel. After that disclosure, Lee was barred from his office in the lab's X Division on Dec. 23, 1998. On that night and the next night, Christmas Eve, he made the first of 17 attempts to re-enter the secure area to collect his personal items, Lee has told his questioners."
"Lee repeatedly sought access to the division after his access card was deactivated and that he gained access three times, including once in January 1999 when a fellow lab employee let him in."

Yeah he's innocent allright.

P.S. Maruchu - I did not post the original links because they were from the Oakland Tribune and they are full of pop up ads.
http://www.oaklandtribune.com/Storie...196182,00.html

Hmmmm this one has been cut. It was the original article.
http://www.oaklandtribune.com/Storie...192170,00.html