At first glance, the current passport flap based on the revelation that all three major candidates’ passport files have broken into by some “imprudently curious” folks caused me to ask the obvious: What’s in a passport file anyway? As someone whose had a passport for over fifty years, I’m embarrassed to say I’m not sure, beyond the obvious, that is: normal identification and proof of citizenship (basically public information), some record of where you’ve been (passport stamps have been generally replaced by a magnetic swipe at the border) even though many countries don’t bother, maybe something on some of the visas you have (for me, most recently, I have a rather pompous document from the Russian Republic attached to my passport, though I doubt the Russians told the US. They were more concerned I pay a fee.). That’s about it. Unless the candidates have been sneaking in and out of the country without our knowing for nefarious purposes, there’s not a helluva lot of there there. And even if they’ve gone places they’re not supposed to, chances are they didn’t have their passport stamped or swiped. [Were you in Communist Cuba for the First Festival of the New Latin American Cinema in 1979?-ed. Don't ask, don't tell... but you can read about it in my forthcoming book. And, no, I didn't get my passport stamped. I flew illegally out of Miami.]
So what is this all about? I’m curious. I’m also curious why the first revelation was about the supposed breach of Obama’s information, then suddenly it was revealed that Clinton and McCain had snoopers too. What’s it all about, Alfie? (other than campaign filler)
BTW, from the Passport Agency’s website,this is the info required for a passport.
1. Your full name at birth and any subsequent name changes and/or the full name of your minor child or children, if you are requesting their records;
2. Your date and place of birth and/or those of your minor child or children;
3. Your current mailing address;
4. Your current daytime telephone number;
5. Your current e-mail address, if available;
6. Your reason for the request;
7. The dates or estimated dates your passports were issued;
8. Your passport numbers or any other information that will help us locate your records; and
9. A copy of requestor’s valid photo identification
There is some stuff in there about addresses and phones I wouldn’t like gvien out. But I suspect for senators that most of it goes back to their offices - again…. public record info.
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13 Comments
1. TerryeL:Maybe it has something to do with getting social security numbers.
Mar 21, 2008 - 4:58 pm 2. David Thomson:This was a boring story. No editor in their right mind should have considered it deserving of front page treatment. Subconsciously, it was probably a silly attempt to help “Barry” Obama by implying the Bush administration was trying to find some dirt on him. Innuendo was to be substituted in the place of any direct evidence. And it might have worked only a few years ago! Fortunately, the New Media is presently able to almost immediately blow this nonsense out of the water. It also didn’t help when we found out that these petty bureaucrats were also looking at the applications of John McCain and the Clintons.
Mar 21, 2008 - 5:29 pm 3. jedrury:It is a non story except to NBC, Brian Williams and Andrea Mitchell who hyped as if it was Clinton and the blue dress.
Lawrence Eagleburger (former Sec’y of State) was on last night telling Chris Matthews as much but the Hardball Ace did not want to hear it. Eagleburger panned it as some dimwitted contractor accessing the files when he got bored. Now that McCain is victimized, the ballon has just gone out of Waxman’s investigation.
This is the silly season and the Dems will play this as if is Abu Graihb
Mar 21, 2008 - 6:45 pm 4. belladonnarogers:The Passport Office does not have SSNs. It was all a way of Obama’s cheerleaders to deflect attention from the very wrong Rev. Wright, whose story, even if all 100 senators’ passport files have been “breached,” will not disappear.
Mar 21, 2008 - 7:15 pm 5. David:Roger, I accidentally entered Yugoslavia illegally, unlike the Cubans neither they nor the state department were happy. Long story short, never take the wrong train and fall asleep. Interestingly enough my then new bride is my current bride.
Mar 21, 2008 - 8:07 pm 6. Jhn'1:Well, it could be the smokescreen. If that is so, then the fact that the Obama peepers got fired while the McCain and Clinton peepers got reprimanded could (should?) become bigger than the original story.
It is also possible that his years as a minor contain possibly embarrassing passport entry stamps, although I suspect that after a certain number of years they get archived and are not available to the general (ie: contract employee accessible) computer system. It is even probable that that old is only on paper and not on the computer system at all, although potential embarrassing unrevealed items might be cause for Obama to lash out at any possible breaches in the veil of obscurity.
Mar 21, 2008 - 8:49 pm 7. CaliforniaDreamer:The non-event also gives BO a chance to rail against the Administration’s “disregard for privacy”, but of course a large portion of State is still retread lefties. Just fodder for Main Stream National Bull#%*t Corp. broadcasts.
Mar 21, 2008 - 10:24 pm 8. youngowens:Roger — I understand that the people who did this are being called “contract workers.” I’m not sure what that means but I do have some insight here because I worked as a consular officer in a U.S. embassy.
Basically, my insight is: I bet that this is exactly, exactly the same scenario that happened when the people at UCLA’s medical facilities looked into Britney Spears’s medical information. Certain people do have access to the passport records of all Americans in this big database. They can access it. However, absolutely none of the available information is earth shattering.
They make a big, huge deal out of telling you in consular training that you are not supposed to look at people’s information at all, ever, without a valid reason. If you do, you can get in big trouble, much like these people. As the instructors pointed out, it’s kind of stupid to look because there’s nothing worth seeing.
Some people are just starf*****s.
Mar 22, 2008 - 12:01 am 9. Pat Patterson:Don’t you people understand how these secret societies work? To expose these vast right wing conspiracies first you need to retrieve the radio transmitters embedded in the passport applications that have been carefully listening in on the sound of file drawers opening and closing for years. Then using the secret algorithims written by Jewish scientists at Dimona which will translate the types sounds made by the filing cabinets and identify who is opening and closing the file drawer. And whether they are right or left handed.
Then and only then can it be revealed that that Sen. Obama’s trip to Euro Disney and Sen. Clinton’s use of the duty free shop in Gatwick were nothing more than fronts to meet with their contacts with either normal sized FBI agents or those perfidious Canadians.
Mar 22, 2008 - 4:47 am 10. Roger:Ah, The Dimona Connection… a possible title for a novel. Better yet - The Dimona Code… more commercial… Now I see what’s behind all this.
Mar 22, 2008 - 6:57 am 11. Herb:See this:
Mar 22, 2008 - 12:41 pm 12. belladonnarogers:http://www.washingtontimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080322/NATION/243762495/1001
Correction to my comment of yesterday: I just read the online story in today’s WashPo about what info the State Department keeps in passport files, and this is what they report:
WHAT IS IN A PASSPORT FILE?
- Applications or reapplications for a passport.
- Requests for extra visa pages.
- Requests to change a name.
- Reports of lost or stolen passports.
PERSONAL DATA IN DOCUMENTS
- Applicant’s date and place of birth.
- Social Security number.
- Mailing address.
- Physical description.
- Parents’ names and birthplaces.
I stand corrected (assuming the Post is correct about the SSNs)and I apologize for my error.
Mar 22, 2008 - 1:25 pm 13. dick:Love this one. After all the good stuff we find that the 3 contract workers involved were kind of interesting. One of them worked for an Obama advisor and the other two worked for one of Hillary’s big benefactors. Expect this one will disappear from the MSM soonest.
Mar 23, 2008 - 4:50 pm