April 7, 2006, 9:51PM
Critics label Bush hypocrite for authorizing leak
President had condemned other disclosures, but White House says situations differBy MICHAEL HEDGES
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON - Democrats called President Bush a hypocrite Friday for authorizing the leak of sensitive intelligence before arguing that other leaks endangered United States, but the White House said there was a sharp distinction between the episodes.
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The president's condemnation of unknown individuals' subsequent leaks to the same newspaper, about his authorization of a secret eavesdropping program without search warrants, could have tipped off terrorists to American spy operations, the spokesman said.
The White House and its critics worked Friday to address information from court documents, released this week, disclosing that Libby told a grand jury that Bush permitted him through Vice President Dick Cheney to leak information from a National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq.
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Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., Bush's 2004 opponent, said the president's effort to find leakers in Washington "needs to go no further than a mirror."
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