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State Dept. Fires 2 Over Breach of Obama Files

Posted Mar 20, 08 7:57 PM CDT in Politics 

(Newser) – The State Department has fired two employees and disciplined a third for taking unauthorized looks at Barack Obama's passport records, NBC News reports. It's not clear what they were trying to do, but their explanations for looking at the files didn't satisfy their bosses. The Obama camp said it smacked of political shenanigans and demanded an investigation.

"This is an outrageous breach of security and privacy, even from an administration that has shown little regard for either over the last eight years," said a statement from the Obama camp. "Our government’s duty is to protect the private information of the American people, not use it for political purposes." The employees were contract workers for the Bureau of Consulate Affairs.

Sources NBC, Boston Globe

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Sen. Barack Obama D-Ill., waits behind the curtain to speak at a town hall meeting in Beckley, W.V., Thursday, March 20, 2008.   (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., speaks in Beckley, W.Va., at the Raleigh County Convention Center Thursday, March 20, 2008.   (AP Photo/Jon C. Hancock)
Sen. Barack Obama D-Ill., talks between bites of a chicken wing, Thursday, March 20, 2008, at Murads' Sports Bar in Charleston, W.Va.   (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
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