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The Evidence, Please

(Los Angeles Times) Editorial- It used to be that the FBI enjoyed a fearsome reputation for ferreting out traitors and spies. But in recent years, its selective persecution has exposed a bureau too often better at making headlines than convictions. It's useful to keep those travesties in mind as Washington is convulsed by reports of a new FBI spy investigation. Mid-level Pentagon official Larry Franklin is said to be under suspicion of supplying classified documents on Iran policy to AIPAC, which allegedly handed them over to Israel. As exciting as this story line may be, the evidence that has emerged in the last week also suggests a more prosaic conclusion: Franklin may be guilty mostly of carelessness. Maybe the FBI has come up with damning evidence that Franklin is something other than the bland civil servant he appears to be. But so far, the bureau's most amazing feat is to have made Franklin interesting.
2004-09-03 00:00:00
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