Apparently not happy enough with breaking a classified program, the New York Times is now suing the Department of Defense to release documents, email exchanges, transcripts of meetings, etc. over the same classified program they uncovered.

The Times said a Dec. 16 letter to the Department of Defense requested all internal memos, e-mails and legal memoranda and opinions since Sept. 11, 2001, related to the National Security Agency spying program. The department is the parent agency of the NSA.

The newspaper said it asked for meeting logs, calendar items and notes related to discussions of the program, including meetings held by Vice President Dick Cheney and his staff with members of Congress and telecommunications executives.

It also requested all complaints of abuse or possible violations in the operations of the program or the legal rationale behind it.

And it sought the names and descriptions of people or groups identified through the use of the program and a description of relevant episodes used to identify the targets of the intercepts.

That sounds like a wonderful idea. Not content with giving our enemies information on how the United States actively sought out their identities, the New York Times now wants everyone’s name who was investigated out in public.  Such a public airing would give those still under investigation that knowledge and those conspiring the knowledge of how suspects are referred to the spying program.

There is certainly a difference between the role of a newspaper such as the NYT and to protect national security.  It is not the job of the NYT to adhere to national interests, but it is their job to appeal to the consumers of their newspaper unless they don’t want to have a job.