Key Issues in Play in Court and Congress
As Bill
Simpich has noted, we now have a live court case in progress, with a meeting
between attorneys for the Plaintiffs and Defendants in early August and a
meeting between the Plaintiffs lawyers (Simpich and Schnaps) on August 17,
2023, when the Judge will be given additional papers including lists of records
destroyed, missing, withheld and withdraw that are now being compiled. The
Judge and Plaintiffs attorneys will then present the lists to the NARA who must
request the Department of Justice to investigate and determine if crimes have
been committed in the destruction or theft of records.
While
the Judge did not rule on the failures of Presidents Trump and Biden for
failing to release all of the JFK assassination records as required by the JFK
Act, he gives the President the power to do what he wants, which leaves us in
the position of trying to get a new President who will enforce the JFK Act, or
get Congress to act again by holding hearings on the JFK Act of 1992, passing
the new JFK Act of 2023 as amended, or establishing a permanent Assassinations
Records Review Board that would review records of all assassinations, including
those yet to occur. We will be coordinating a concerted Congressional Campaign
for the fall of 2023.
SOME
KEY ISSUES IN PLAY
1) The
President has the authority to withhold records, certify and declare whatever
he wants. Biden has washed his hands of his responsibilities under the JFK Act,
and will do nothing more as long as he is in power. This is already a
Presidential campaign issues as candidates Trump and RFK,Jr both promise to
release all remaining records shortly after taking office and appoint a strong
open records Archivist, one with a backbone. As of now, Biden has approved the
NARA-CIA-Pentagon created Transparency Plan that is quite different than the
JFK Act of 1992, which lists reasons the President and only the President can
continue to withhold records. And he must state the reason for continued
withholding each of them. Biden has relinquished his power to continue withholding
records and releasing them to the relatively new National Declassification
Center (NDC), which comes under the umbrella of the NARA. And they will be
using the new Transparency Plan directives instead of the JFK Act.
2) The JFK Act does not permit the redaction of names of living persons as a reason for withholding records, but it is an element in the CIA-DOD created Transparency Plan, that the judge rules is now, and has been in effect. This is the issue that I addressed in my affidavit-declaration to the court
{JFKcountercoup:
Final Declaration of William E. Kelly, Jr. MFF v. Joseph R. Biden and NARA}
3) Another reason for withholding records is the mention of - Ongoing Covert Intelligence Operations - many in cooperation with foreign countries. There are a number of joint operations in play, including those with the CIA and Mexican police and security agencies, and the USA and Australia ELINT listening post in the Aussie Outback town of Alice Springs, in the shadow of Ayres Rock. See Collins Radio file, that they tried to withhold by classifying it Not Believed Relevant NBR, but it certainly is.
[JFKCountercoup2:
New Collins Radio Document Released]
4) The Judge in his ruling makes no mention of NARA continuing the search for
additional Records, which means it must be ongoing.
5] The Judge did rule that NARA is responsible for notifying Department of
Justice of Records Destroyed, and a list is being compiled, as well as records
missing, withdrawn and withheld.
7) The judge ordered the release of all Congressional Records in the JFK Collection, which would include Pike Committee, Church Committee - Schweiker/Hart Subcommittee, House Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) and Assassination Records Review Board records.
8) OTHER
- There may be others that I missed.
No comments:
Post a Comment