She Didn't Get the Interview, but Iranians Didn't Get the Joke

E-Mail Follies, Cont'd

How many times do we have to remind people to double- and triple-check before hitting the "send" button?

In what has to be one of the more bizarre screw-ups of the Internet era, the House Judiciary Committee, after promising strict confidentiality, inadvertently sent the e-mail addresses of Justice Department whistle-blowers out to all those who have used a special tip line.

The error, first reported by TPMmuckraker, was compounded when the committee sent out a second e-mail to about 150 people who've used the tip line, trying to recall the first. Apparently, only the e-mail addresses were revealed -- and doubtless many of them don't reveal identities, and others, the Web site reported, appeared to be fake.

But one address was vice_president@whitehouse.gov. That would be Cheney's public address, so his office got all of the whistle-blowers' e-mail addresses. Gotta give you a warm and toasty feeling.

In a statement, a committee spokesman blamed a "technological error" and said it was trying to see if those exposed really were whistle-blowers or just random whiners using the hotline.

"The Committee apologizes for any concern this error may have caused, and is making every effort to protect the confidentiality" for those who used the hotline.

Little more effort wouldn't hurt.

Leaving, but Not Going

Drug Enforcement Administration folks have been wondering exactly when outgoing chief Karen P. Tandy was leaving to take her new job as senior vice president of Motorola. Tandy, the first woman to head the DEA, told staff last week that she was moving on after four years at the helm.

It was to be sometime this month, everyone understood, but so far no one has been able to pin down a precise departure date. Then there was buzz that she was leaving in mid-month -- after first doing a farewell tour next week of Latin America, with at least four stops in Brazil, including that mandatory trip to the spectacular Iguazu Falls.

Motorola would probably benefit from greater exposure in Latin America, but now it seems the trip is not happening. Too bad. We were hoping reporters would be asked to cover.

Support a Hero

Empty nesters? Got nothing to do on Halloween? There's still time to head up to Michael Gerson's cocktail party and book signing hosted in Manhattan at the Council on Foreign Relations. Gerson, a former White House speechwriter and new Washington Post op-ed columnist, will happily sign his book, "Heroic Conservatism," on sale for $26.95. No costumes needed.

FCC, Barely Present and Accounted For

Seems there's some tension at the Federal Communications Commission -- not just over policy matters but even over noncontroversial matters.

We're told no one at the FCC was particularly excited about going to the World Radiocommunication Conference in Geneva starting last Friday, but commissioner Robert McDowell volunteered to attend the opening session. He pretty much had his bags packed and was ready to go but Chairman Kevin Martin, who's had some differences with fellow Republican McDowell, wouldn't sign off, Communications Daily reported.

An FCC presence at the conference apparently isn't critical, but it's helpful to have a high-level person there to show the flag and signal that the issues are of interest to Washington. Back in 2003, commissioners Kathleen Abernathy and Michael Copps both attended.

Late Thursday, Martin tapped commissioner Deborah Tate, who was already going to be in Europe by the end of the week, to attend, the trade paper reported. But she wasn't going to make it to the opening sessions, marking the first time in quite a while that no commissioner was on hand.

Staff researcher Julie Tate contributed to this column.