Lawmaker embroiled in spy case

A leading House Democrat was overheard on a federal wiretap saying that she would seek leniency for two pro-Israel lobbyists, then under investigation for espionage, in exchange for help in securing the chairmanship of the Intelligence Committee, unnamed intelligence officials claimed this week. According to the officials, who were quoted in Congressional Quarterly Online and The New York Times, Rep. Jane Harman of California was recorded by the National Security Agency in 2005 during its investigation into the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. Two AIPAC lobbyists and a Pentagon official were later charged with espionage.

Harman, who was passed over for the chairmanship, vigorously denied the accusations, saying she’d contacted no one in the Bush administration in behalf of the lobbyists. She also asked U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to release the full wiretap transcripts and to “investigate possible wiretapping of other members of Congress and selective leaks of investigative material.”

These leaks have politics written all over them, said Laura Rozen in Foreign Policy Online. Just as the Obama administration unveils Bush-era memos on harsh interrogation techniques, “Bush-era intelligence officials” are suddenly blabbing to the press, painting a target on the back of a prominent Democrat. These leakers may be sending a warning to Democrats—if you come after us, we’ll come after you.

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That’s one possibility, said Tim Rutten in the Los Angeles Times. Another is that critics of Israel are worried that the AIPAC prosecution may be falling apart, and they want to keep the heat on by dragging in Harman, a prominent Israel backer. That certainly would explain why “three years after the fact,” we’re hearing about these conversations—which, by the way, were merely described by sources. No actual transcripts have turned up.

Regardless, these accusations are enormously troubling, as is Harman’s reaction, said David Corn in CQPolitics.com. She has said both that she can’t recall any conversation with a “suspected Israeli agent,” and also that this person was “an American citizen.” If she can’t recall the conversation, how does she know it was with an American? This merits a serious investigation.