Those Allegedly Untrustworthy American Reporters

Back in October, the U.S. Department of Defense — yes, I know what the administration calls it, but check the Federal Register or the most recently passed appropriations bill — instituted a new set of rules that stated that Pentagon correspondents who "solicit" "classified national security information" or "controlled classified information" may be considered a security risk.

Although there is no single statute that provides criminal penalties for all types of unauthorized disclosures of classified information, disclosing classified information is almost always treated as a crime. That is, unless a jury is likely to find you "a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory."