The oath to the Constitution
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The oath to the Constitution is the ground on which John Kiriakou rests his answer to the charge that a former officer who speaks has broken faith. Asked whether he clears what he says, he answers by putting the two undertakings in order of precedence.

> "On our first day at the CIA, we put our right hands up in the air and we swore to protect the Constitution from all enemies, foreign and domestic. And both Ray and I took that very seriously. I want to protect secrets just like anybody else does, but the Constitution is more important."

Ray McGovern, on the same programme, states the point in contractual terms. He describes receiving perhaps two warning letters a year from the agency and ignoring them "because they don't have a leg to stand on." His reasoning: "that little contract that I signed, that said I won't reveal any information that is prejudicial to the national security, is just a contract. It's not the Constitution. I took a solemn oath to defend and protect the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic. That has a First Amendment in it. That trumps things."

Neither treats the priority as licence to publish anything. McGovern draws his own line at the presidential briefings he delivered, "I am very, very careful not to reveal anything of any substance having to do with those briefings. That is sacrosanct, and I would never violate that trust", and at anything that would risk sources and methods. Kiriakou's version of the same limit is the prepublication review he mostly submits to, with named exceptions.

See also

- Ray McGovern
- Prepublication review
- John Kiriakou
- Central Intelligence Agency
