2016 Postmortem
In reply to the discussion: Hillary's Email Scandal for Non-Techy People [View all]leveymg
(36,418 posts)at some places to delete a name, which in all likelihood was Tyler Drumheller, a retired CIA agent who was working with Bluementhal trying to obtain State Dept. contracts in Libya.
The specifics do not bear up the allegation made in the blog piece of wholesale "altering documents to frame Hillary." The actual Cummings letter states that the CIA did not confirm that the redaction made by the Committee of a name on a single email was necessary "to protect sources and methods." Indeed, all of those CIA-related emails referenced in the article remain classified, and the one that was cited [STATE-SCB0078243] in Gowdy's response letter has, in fact, not been released through the State Dept. FOIA reading room. Look yourself: https://foia.state.gov/search/results.aspx?searchText=*&beginDate=&endDate=&publishedBeginDate=&publishedEndDate=&caseNumber=SCB0078243 There is no way to independently verify any of the information you cited, except for the contents of Cummings letter to Gowdy.
If you read the exact wording of Cummings letter (.pdf linked in Newsweek article), it appears that he is saying that the Committee's redactions of the names on one document were unnecessary. There is no direct statement made by Cummings that there was no CIA-originated classified information sent by Blumenthal to Clinton. Based on a reading of the actual Cummings letter, the blogger you linked seems to have gotten it wrong when one examines the actual letter. Here's the excerpt of the Cummings letter quoted:
individual with the words, "redacted due to sources and methods." To be clear, these redactions
were not made, and these words were not added, by any agency of the federal government
responsible for enforcing classification guidelines.
Predictably, commentators began repeating your accusations in even more extreme terms,
suggesting in headlines for example that "Clinton Burns CIA Libya Contact."2
Contrary to your claims, the CIA yesterday informed both the Republican and
Democratic staffs of the Select Committee that they do not consider the information you
highlighted in your letter to be classified. Specifically, the CIA confirmed that "the State
Depmiment consulted with the CIA on this production, the CIA reviewed these documents, and
the CIA made no redactions to protect classified information. "
Also, see, in text of Newsweek article, reference to:
Symbol FOOTNOTE 1: Email from Sidney Blumenthal to Hon. Hillary R. Clinton (Mar. 18, 2011) [STATE-SCB0078243].