Allegations of CIA spying on the Senate deserve investigation

[Commentary] President Barack Obama’s foes have been trying for years to uncover scandal in his administration. But the most damning allegation of wrongdoing was leveled on the Senate floor -- by a friend.

Sen Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), chairwoman of the Senate intelligence committee, has been an ally of President Obama and a staunch defender of the administration during the controversy over the National Security Agency’s surveillance programs. So her credibility could not be questioned when she went public, reluctantly, to accuse President Obama’s CIA of illegal and unconstitutional actions: violating the separation of powers by searching the committee’s computers and intimidating congressional staffers with bogus legal threats. Sen Feinstein is owed much more than an apology.

The White House needs to cough up documents it is withholding from the public, and it should remove the CIA officials involved and subject them to an independent prosecutor’s investigation. If the White House wishes to repair the damage, it would declassify without further delay the report done by Feinstein’s committee -- along with the Panetta Review. If the White House won’t, Sen Feinstein’s panel and others would be justified in holding up CIA funding and nominations and conducting public hearings.