Earlier today, Media Matters posted comments Joe Scarborough made about Washington Post reporter Dana Priest. In a statement posted by The Huffington Post, Scarborough has now addressed those comments:
Earlier today on Morning Joe, a guest suggested that President Obama might shoulder the blame for any future terror attacks on the United States because the CIA would not be using enhanced interrogation techniques adopted following September 11th. I took that opportunity to defend Barack Obama by saying the CIA's counterterrorism program was compromised long before the President was inaugurated this year.
I stated that the blame for any future attacks on the United States by terrorists should not be blamed on President Obama, but instead on a reporter who revealed highly classified material regarding CIA counterterrorism programs beginning in 2004. I found the reporting of that classified material to be reckless and irresponsible. I also believe it compromised the CIA's ability to carry out its mission of defending our homeland while damaging relations with countries who dared to aid the United States in its war against al Qaeda.
Because I broadcast for five hours a day, five days a week, I sometimes phrase things in ways that I later regret. It is inevitable. Still, I have regularly used my TV and radio platforms to encourage members of both parties to tone down their rhetoric and speak responsibility.
For that reason, I feel a responsibility to correct my earlier statement.
If the United States is attacked in the future, it will be for a variety of reasons. Feckless politicians will share a greater responsibility for future loss of life due to terrorist strikes than a reporter who revealed the most sensitive of state secrets. After reading the statement I made earlier today, I realize it does not accurately reflect my feelings. I regret making that statement. Such are the dangers of discussing complex policies for five hours a day without the aid of a teleprompter.
Previously:
