Obama TSA nominee 'misled' Senate, may have broken laws

By: Mark Hemingway
Commentary Staff Writer
01/01/10 12:35 AM EST
Washington Examiner

The Washington Post just dropped this bombshell: "TSA nominee misled Congress about accessing confidential records":

The White House nominee to lead the Transportation Security Administration gave Congress misleading information about incidents in which he inappropriately accessed a federal database, possibly in violation of privacy laws, documents obtained by The Washington Post show.

The disclosure comes as pressure builds from Democrats on Capitol Hill for quick January confirmation of Erroll Southers, whose nomination has been held up by GOP opponents. In the aftermath of an attempted airline bombing on Christmas Day, calls have intensified for lawmakers to install permanent leadership at the TSA, a critical agency in enforcing airline security.

Southers, a former FBI agent, has described inconsistencies in his accounts to Congress as "inadvertent" and the result of poor memory of an incident that dates back 20 years. He said in a Nov. 20 letter to key senators obtained by The Post that he had accepted full responsibility long ago for a "grave error in judgment" in accessing confidential criminal records about his then-estranged wife's new boyfriend.

His letter to Joseph I. Lieberman (I-Conn.), chairman of the Senate homeland security committee, and Susan Collins (Maine), the ranking Republican on the panel, attempts to correct statements about the episode that were made in a sworn affidavit on Oct. 22 and have been reported.

Southers did not respond to a request for an interview.

Following the Christmas Day terror attack, a lot of people have been pointing fingers at the Transportation Safety Administration for failing to do their job. After a news cycle or two of the TSA taking some pretty severe lumps, there appeared to be a coordinated campaign among Democrats to push back against those criticizing the Obama administration's TSA failure by pointing the finger at Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C.

DeMint had a hold on Erroll Southers, Obama's nominee to be TSA head adminsistrator. Of course, the Obama administration waited nine months to nominate anyone to fill the position -- so blaming DeMint for holding up Southers nominee an additional three months seems a bit disingenuous, especially since the delay wasn't entirely DeMint's fault as the Senate Democrats were busy with health care. Further, DeMint had some pretty legitimate national security concerns with regard to Southers.

And now on the heels of a massive TSA failure it's revealed that Obama's nominee to head up that agency wasn't truthful with Congress and may have broken laws. It sure looks as if DeMint is vindicated for holding up Southers' nomination, and this is yet another major national security embarassment for the White House in the wake of what the President admitted was a "catastophic" national security failure on Christmas.

put him in jail with all the other people who break the laws EVEN G W BUSH & G H Bush SR.

He admitted to that 20 years ago.

It's been known. He has not broken any laws since.

This is just an opinion piece probably influenced by partisan politics.

Reading his comments in the Washington Post, I'd say he sounds like a Bush man.



Southers first described the episode in his October affidavit, telling the Senate panel that two decades ago he asked a San Diego Police Department employee to access confidential criminal records about the boyfriend. Southers said he had been censured by superiors at the FBI. He described the incident as isolated and expressed regrets about it.

The committee approved his nomination Nov. 19. One day later, Southers wrote to Lieberman and Collins saying his first account was incorrect. After reviewing documents, he wrote, he recalled that he had twice conducted the database searches himself, downloaded confidential law enforcement records about his wife's boyfriend and passed information on to the police department employee, the letter said.

It is a violation of the federal Privacy Act to access such information without proper cause. The law says that "any person who knowingly and willfully requests or obtains any record concerning an individual from an agency under false pretenses shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and fined not more than $5,000."

In his letter, Southers said he simply forgot the circumstances of the searches, which occurred in 1987 and 1988 after he grew worried about his wife and their son, who had begun living with the boyfriend. The letter said: "During a period of great personal turmoil, I made a serious error in judgment by using my official position with the FBI to resolve a personal problem." He did not specify the data system he accessed.

"I am distressed by the inconsistencies between my recollection and the contemporaneous documents, but I assure you that the mistake was inadvertent, and that I have at all times taken full responsibility for what I know to have been a grave error in judgment," the letter said. "This incident was over twenty years ago, I was distraught and concerned about my young son, and never in my career since has there been any recurrence of this sort of conduct."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/31/AR2009123102257.html

The guy in the Examiner article says, and I quote,

"Southers did not respond to a request for an interview."

like that has credence.

The guy did respond to the Washington Post!

It does bother me that he isn't in jail for it and i don't know if the federal government has a statue of limitations but if they don't then he should be in jail now . but what ever the case maybe he has shown that he does not have the character to be in control of any secrets .
its $5000 or 1 year in jail ..

In November, Southers assured Senators - under oath - it was an isolated lapse.

"Have you ever in the past misused your access to databases that the government maintains, other than the one incident that lead to this censure?" asked Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine.

"No, Senator, I have not," Southers replied.

But a week later, Southers contradicted that account. It was in a letter he wrote to the Senate Homeland Security Committee Nov. 20, as reported by the Washington Post Friday.

Southers admitted it wasn't someone else who accessed confidential government databases, but he himself. And not once - but twice. Southers also disclosed a third apparent breach: he downloaded confidential law enforcement records in 1987 or 1988.

CBS news today

well this proves he a pig who lies a whole lot ..

Southers first described the episode in his October affidavit, telling the Senate panel that two decades ago he asked a San Diego Police Department employee to access confidential criminal records about the boyfriend. Southers said he had been censured by superiors at the FBI. He described the incident as isolated and expressed regrets about it.

The committee approved his nomination Nov. 19. One day later, Southers wrote to Lieberman and Collins saying his first account was incorrect. After reviewing documents, he wrote, he recalled that he had twice conducted the database searches himself, downloaded confidential law enforcement records about his wife's boyfriend and passed information on to the police department employee, the letter said.

It is a violation of the federal Privacy Act to access such information without proper cause. The law says that "any person who knowingly and willfully requests or obtains any record concerning an individual from an agency under false pretenses shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and fined not more than $5,000."

In his letter, Southers said he simply forgot the circumstances of the searches, which occurred in 1987 and 1988 after he grew worried about his wife and their son, who had begun living with the boyfriend. The letter said: "During a period of great personal turmoil, I made a serious error in judgment by using my official position with the FBI to resolve a personal problem." He did not specify the data system he accessed.

"I am distressed by the inconsistencies between my recollection and the contemporaneous documents, but I assure you that the mistake was inadvertent, and that I have at all times taken full responsibility for what I know to have been a grave error in judgment," the letter said. "This incident was over twenty years ago, I was distraught and concerned about my young son, and never in my career since has there been any recurrence of this sort of conduct."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/31/AR2009123102257.html

It just proves he forgot and after reviewing documents he wrote them telling them of his inconsistencies.



Either way,
this is not the reason for the Republicans holding up his confirmation.


Is it?

Cuckoo, Cuckoo.
Look away from the pretty lights, bells, and whistles.

This has nothing to do with why Demint has been holding up Southers confirmation.

Another liar/cheat/criminal nominated by Obama... What a surprise..

Why do people dig up crap from 20 years ago? Just looking for more cow chips to sling. The FBI runs on secrecy and feeds on classified information. How would you be so surprised the Suthers looked into the criminal records of someone he loved? Big whoop. Attempts to break down the government include airing out all the dirty laundry. It takes a lot of valuable time to do laundry. Must we dwell on every poop streak we find in the underwear?

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV
your past shows your character and predicts what you well do in the future . If you are upstandig and honest then you well proably be that way from now on . if your a drug dealer or armed robber liar then you well most likely be the that way from now on if your of low morals your not going to change . thats why we look in the past because thats the future to

Everyone fails.
If you've never made a mistake you've never lived.

Ask any successful man if he's ever failed!

What we do does not define who we are.
What define us is how well we rise after falling.

All a big puzzle, Fanta. We don't know who we are. All is defined by other people relating to what we say. I see you... My Generation Baby...bring it on.