Mary O'Neil McCarthy (born 1945) is a former United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) employee who last worked in the Office of the Inspector General. In her career, she was an intelligence analyst and national intelligence officer for warning.
She was dismissed on April 21, 2006, after, according to the CIA, an individual admitted "unauthorized contacts with the media and discussion of classified information" following a polygraph examination.New York Daily News, Secret Prison Leaker at CIA Gets Canned, April 22, 2006, by Kenneth Bazinet.
Biography Before entering the intelligence profession, McCarthy received a Ph.D. in history and an M.A. in library science from the University of Minnesota, as well as a B.A. and M.A. in history from Michigan State University. From 1979 to 1984 she held a position at BERI, S.A. According to its webpage, BERI provides risk assessment for businesses operating in an international environment, in which she conducted financial, operational, and political risk assessment for multinational corporations. She taught at the University of Minnesota and was director of the Social Science Data Archive at Yale University and wrote a book on the colonial history of present-day Ghana.Center on Law and Security , nyu.edu; accessed December 2, 2015.
In 2005, McCarthy received a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center after taking evening classes, and was admitted to the Maryland Bar in December 2005 and the District of Columbia Bar in 2007.
Career in intelligence
McCarthy began working for the CIA in 1984 as an analyst for Africa in the Directorate of Intelligence. She served as the deputy national intelligence officer for warning from 1991 to 1994 and as national intelligence officer for warning from 1994 to 1996.
Following her service as national intelligence officer for warning, McCarthy served as director of intelligence programs on the National Security Council staff. In 1998, Sandy Berger,In 2004 Berger was charged with and later pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor for mishandling classified information in an unrelated incident in a plea bargain arrangement. then National Security Advisor for President Bill Clinton, appointed her as special assistant to the president and senior director for intelligence programs1998 Memo of Sandy Berger appointment, fas.org; accessed December 2, 2015. These NSC positions were competitive civil service jobs, not political appointments, according to the 2000 Plum Book listing presidentially appointed positions.The Plum Book , United States Government Policy and Supporting Positions, gpoaccess.gov; accessed December 2, 2015. succeeding Rand Beers. She remained at the NSC until July 2001, when she left to take a position with the Center for Strategic and International Studies as a visiting fellow in international security. It has been reported that she returned to CIA in a capacity within the Office of the Inspector General in 2005,TPMCafe.com, "The Firing of Mary McCarthy", April 22, 2006, by Larry Johnson and was within days of retiring.R. Jeffrey Smith and Dafna Linzer, Washington Post, "Dismissed CIA Officer Denies Leak Role", April 25, 2006; accessed December 2, 2015.
In 1998, McCarthy opposed the bombing of al-Shifa pharmaceutical factory suspected of manufacturing chemical weapons.New York Times, "Colleagues Say CIA Analyst Played by the Rules", April 23, 2006, by David Cloud. Immediately after the bombing the government of Sudan claimed the factory only made pharmaceuticals and demanded an apology from the United States. Neither the Clinton nor Bush administrations have apologized for the attack. The 9/11 Commission Report found that, in April 2000, the National Security staff reviewed the intelligence and agreed that al-Shifa was used in chemical weapons development. The memo to Sandy Berger was signed by Richard Clarke and Mary McCarthy, showing that McCarthy had changed her view to support the bombing of the plant (see footnote 50 on page 482 of the report).
In 2003, she testified before the 9/11 Commission about warning systems.Statement of Mary O. McCarthy to the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon The United States October 14, 2003, 9-11commission.gov; accessed December 2, 2015.
Campaign contributions In the wake of her dismissal, The New York Times reported McCarthy had donated $2,000The legal maximum is $2,100 to the John Kerry campaign.David Johnston and Scott Shane, "CIA Fires Senior Officer Over Leaks", New York Times, April 22, 2006; accessed December 2, 2015.
According to public records, McCarthy contributed $5,000 to the Ohio Democratic Party and $500 to the Democratic National Committee in October 2004, and $200 to Steve Andreasen, the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party candidate for the 1st District of Minnesota, U.S. House of Representatives, but lost to incumbent Gil Gutknecht in November 2002.Opensecrets.org Opensecrets.org is a website maintained by OpenSecrets According to The Washington Post, the White House has "recently barraged the agency with questions about the political affiliations of some of its senior intelligence officers".R. Jeffrey Smith and Dafna Linzer, "CIA Officer's Job Made Any Leaks More Delicate", The Washington Post, April 23, 2006; accessed December 2, 2015.
Leak scandal On April 21, 2006, it was reported that a CIA employee was dismissed for releasing classified material. The employee was subsequently identified as Mary McCarthy by the New York Times and other news organizations. Sources said the firing occurred after a polygraph examination indicated the possibility of deception and she subsequently admitted revealing classified information. McCarthy reportedly had leaked information to the Washington Post'''s Dana Priest on several occasions. Her identity has as yet not been confirmed officially by government sources; however, several CIA spokespersons have talked to the press about the incident. CIA spokeswoman Michele Neff is quoted as saying, "This CIA officer acknowledged having unauthorized discussions with the media in which the officer knowingly shared classified intelligence, including operational information."Dafna Linzer, The Washington Post, "CIA Officer Is Fired for Media Leaks", April 22, 2006; accessed December 2, 2015.
On April 24, McCarthy's lawyer, Ty Cobb, told the New York Times that she "categorically denied leaking classified information [and] having access to the information attributed to her". It was not in dispute that she had unauthorized contact with reporters. NBC's Andrea Mitchell called such contact a "firing offense", adding, "but no one can recall anyone being fired for this".CIA sending message about leaks?. Partial transcript of Andre Mitchell's report. Prior to being fired, she had submitted her resignation on February 7, 2006, and her scheduled last day of work was April 30.New York Times, "Fired C.I.A. Officer Denies Role in Leak", April 25, 2006, by Mark Mazzetti and Scott Shane On the same day, a Newsweek story quoted Beers as saying that she "categorically denie[d] being the source of the leak".Mark Hosenball and Michael Isikoff, "Secrets of the CIA" , msnbc.msn.com, April 24, 2006. The same Newsweek article reported that a "counter-terrorism official ... acknowledged that in firing McCarthy, the CIA was not necessarily accusing her of being the principal, original, or sole leaker of any particular story".
According to David Johnston and Scott Shane of the New York Times, "In an effort to stem leaks, the Bush administration launched several initiatives this year targeting journalists and national security employees. They include FBI probes, extensive polygraphing inside the CIA and a warning from the Justice Department that reporters could be prosecuted under espionage laws."Espionage Act of 1917 is in U.S. Code Title 18, Part I, Chapter 37.
As yet, no criminal charges have been filed against McCarthy. The media has also reported that intelligence and law enforcement officials indicated that charges would not likely be filed against McCarthy."Fired CIA Officer Likely Won't Face Charges Over Leak", latimes.com, April 26, 2006. According to news reports, other CIA officials have leaked classified information without being fired or prosecuted. Most notable among these is Paul R. Pillar who leaked portions of a classified National Intelligence Estimate he worked on.Robert Novak, "CIA vs. Bush", townhall.com, September 27, 2004.
Criminal Code According to David Johnston and Scott Shane of The New York Times, "In an effort to stem leaks, the Bush administration launched several initiatives this year targeting journalists and national security employees. They include FBI probes, extensive polygraphing inside the CIA and a warning from the Justice Department that reporters could be prosecuted under espionage laws"."NYTimes reporters discuss use of espionage laws in leak case" , nytimes.com; accessed December 2, 2015. The relevant parts of the Espionage Act of 1917 is in U.S. Code Title 18, Part I, Chapter 37. Deliberate disclosure of classified material for which one is entrusted access fall under Section §794 and Section §798 (see , ). These laws carry penalties of up to capital punishment or up to ten years imprisonment, respectively.
Polygraph investigation The polygraph investigation was part of a large-scale investigation into intelligence leaks. According to the Los Angeles Times, "In the last several months, the agency has conducted dozens of 'single-issue' polygraph examinations in which senior officers were asked exclusively about contacts with news organizations and disclosures of classified information". Some have suggested that the investigations may have been politically motivated. Former CIA officer Melissa Boyle Mahle while appearing on MSNBC's Countdown on April 24, 2006, that many in the agency consider the leak investigation a "witch hunt". She added that, "within the agency, there is no such thing as a good leak. And everybody looks at that pretty much through the same optic. Leaks are bad. Nobody supports it. And if you are caught leaking, you're—not only are you going to get fired and lose your security clearance, but you're going to lose the respect of your colleagues". She observed that Director of Central Intelligence Porter Goss focused on leaks from "the first day [he] came over to the CIA" and suggests that "employees feel targeted" by what is widely perceived as a witch hunt.Countdown with Keith Olbermann, NBC News.msn.com, April 24, 2006.Goss himself resigned suddenly on May 5, 2006. News reports claim this move was unrelated to the McCarthy firing two weeks earlier. Associated Press, "CIA Chief Goss Leaves CIA in Latest Change", yahoo.com, May 5, 2006.
On November 14, 2004, Newsday quoted a former senior CIA official on the political implications of Goss's focus on leaks: "The agency is being purged on instructions from the White House. ... Goss was given instructions ... to get rid of those soft leakers and liberal Democrats. The CIA is looked on by the White House as a hotbed of liberals and people who have been obstructing the president's agenda."Knut Royce,"White House Orders Purge of CIA 'Liberals', Sources Say" , commondreams.org, November 14, 2004. Less than two weeks after McCarthy's dismissal, Goss himself was forced out of the CIA, resigning his directorship "under pressure" on May 5, 2005.
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