Biden and Panetta Face Civil Lawsuit for Families of SEAL Team VI

After what seems like months of hiding in the shadows, VP Joe Biden made a brief appearance when he announced the Senate immigration bill was passed.  Other than that, Biden has stayed out of the scandal spotlight, perhaps because of his 2016 presidential hopes.  However those hopes may be changed, as Biden and former CIA head Leon Panetta have been named in a lawsuit.

Yes, you read that correctly—although you probably haven’t heard much about it via the mainstream media.

While hosting The Austin Rhodes Show, WGAC’s Bill Botham presented me with a breaking news story he received from Freedom Watch.  The headline read, “Biden and Panetta Sued by Navy SEAL Team VI and Special Ops families.”

Apparently the families of these soldiers believe that their deaths on August 6, 2011 were directly related to classified information being leaked.  Four members of the Navy SEAL Team VI are being represented by their families in this civil lawsuit against Biden and Panetta, whom they contend released the information that put “targets” on the back of the members of the SEALs.  Additionally the following were also added to this lawsuit: Islamic Republic of Iran, Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who is alleged to have tipped off the Taliban about the coordinates of the Extortion 17 operation (which included SEAL Team VI and Special Ops members).

Larry Klayman (founder of Judicial Watch/Freedom Watch) and a former prosecutor for the Justice Department are representing the plaintiffs in the case is just a portion of what they had to say:

“It is hypocritical and outrageous that while the Obama Justice Department can criminally charge Edward Snowden for allegedly disclosing classified national security information and wage an international manhunt for his arrest, Biden and Panetta get off scot free for their callous, cynical, opportunistic illegal release of the identity of SEAL Team VI in the Bin Laden killing”.

Many believe it was simply for political gain—to get Obama reelected–when Leon Panetta released the name of the SEALs who were responsible for killing Bin Laden.  Panetta did so in front of a large group attending a dinner including a producer for the Hollywood movie, Zero Dark Thirty.

It is interesting to note that while the Obama administration seems to have gotten a free pass from the media for outing our SEAL Team VI, the Bush administration was constantly under fire for outing CIA agent Valarie Plame.  In April of this year the Huffington Post interviewed Plame to spotlight her recently released book accounting her ordeal. The difference is that Plame didn’t lose her life because of the release of her name, while several members of the SEAL Team VI did, for political purposes by our own Vice President and the CIA Director.

Where is the same outrage by the media for this travesty of justice? Where is the investigation and prosecution of those responsible for the leaks of the SEAL Team VI? Scooter Libby was sentenced to prison for his role in the Valerie Plame exposure, but the SEAL Team VI scandal hasn’t been held to the same standards.

In the lawsuit, the victims’ families are asking for an award of $200 million dollars that will go toward the aid and support of the surviving families of fallen heroes of SEAL Team VI.