Romney seeks probe of WH leaks

Associated Press

RENO, Nev.

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney on Tuesday called for an independent investigation into claims the White House had leaked national-security information for President Barack Obama’s political gain, part of a searing speech that marked a wholesale indictment of the Democrat’s foreign policy.

In a race that so far has focused almost entirely on the sluggish economy, Romney also critiqued Obama’s handling of Iran’s nuclear threat, the violence in Syria and relations with Israel during a speech to the Veterans of Foreign Wars convention.

In his first foreign-policy speech since emerging as the likely Republican presidential nominee, Romney accused Obama of putting politics over national security, a serious charge that went straight at a policy area where national polls show the president with the edge.

The turn also was a reminder that the increasingly biting campaign, which paused over the weekend in deference to the deadly movie-theater shooting in Colorado, was on again in earnest.

“This conduct is contemptible,” Romney said of the leaks of classified information. “It betrays our national interest. It compromises our men and women in the field. And it demands a full and prompt investigation by a special prosecutor, with explanation and consequence.”

Attorney General Eric Holder has appointed two federal prosecutors to get to the bottom of the leaks, but Romney suggested that wasn’t good enough.

The White House has rejected calls for a special prosecutor, saying there is no need for one.