Holder said the investigations will be conducted separately from the probes launched in recent days by the FBI into the possible disclosure of classified information to reporters. Prosecutors from the Justice Department’s National Security Division will be involved in both investigations, a law enforcement source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
President Obama today disputed that the leaks came from the White House (video of press conference here):
The notion that my White House would purposely release classified national security information is offensive. It’s wrong,” Obama said at a morning news conference. The president added that there were “mechanisms in place” to “root out folks who have leaked.”
“They will suffer consequences,” he said. “When this information, or reports, whether true or false, surface on the front page of newspapers, that makes the job of folks on the front lines tougher and it makes my job tougher, which is why since I’ve been in office, my attitude has been zero tolerance for these kinds of leaks and speculation.”
The alleged leaks being complained of pertain to national security matters:
... including a New York Times article chronicling Obama’s approval of a “kill list” of suspected terrorists targeted with drone attacks, reports in the Times and The Washington Post regarding U.S. involvement in cyberattacks on Iran’s nuclear program and details in a new book by Newsweek special correspondent Daniel Klaidman about the administration’s deliberations on the detention of suspected terrorists.