Wikileaks: The plot sickens...

Now comes Sen. Joseph Lieberman (Ind.-Connecticut), who has introduced the dream act for neoconservatives. As reported by Kevin Poulson in the Wired magazine Threat Level blog, Sen. Lieberman has put into the hopper a bill he calls the "SHIELD Act," which would make it a criminal offense

to publish information “concerning the identity of a classified source or informant of an element of the intelligence community of the United States,” or “concerning the human intelligence activities of the United States or any foreign government” if such publication is prejudicial to U.S. interests.

Sounds pretty straightforward, right? Wrong. Mr. Poulson writes:

Lieberman’s proposed solution to WikiLeaks could have implications for journalists reporting on some of the more unsavory practices of the intelligence community. For example, former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega was once a paid CIA asset. Would reporting that now be a crime?

For how long does this prohibition extend. Forever?

The proposed legislation, fortunately, does not affect Julian Assange, because the U.S. Constitution prohibits ex post facto laws (those which would prosecute an act that took place before the legislation was passed).