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THIS HARROWING ORDEAL IN KANSAS
CITY, WE'LL PASS IT ON TO YOU ON
CNN.
>>> LET ME SWITCH DEALS TO YOU.
WE'RE TALKING ABOUT ANOTHER HUGE
STORY THAT HAS BROKEN AS WELL.
THIS MILITARY JUDGE HAS
ACQUITTED THE ARMY'S BRADLEY
MANNING OF THE MOST SERIOUS
COUNT AGAINST HIM.
SO BRADLEY MANNING, NOT GUILTY
OF AIDING THE ENEMY.
THE JUDGE CONVICTED MANNING OF A
NUMBER OF LESSER CHARGES FOR THE
LARGEST LEAK OF U.S. SECRETS IN
U.S. HISTORY SINCE 700,000
CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS.
HE FACES YEARS IN PRISON WHEN
HE'S SENTENCED.
IN A STATEMENT RELEASED MOMENTS
AFTER THE VERDICT WIKILEAKS, THE
WEB SIDE MANNING GAVE THE
INFORMATION TO SAID, QUOTE,
BRADLEY MANNING'S CONVICTIONS
INCLUDED FIVE COUNTS OF
ESPIONAGE, A VERY SERIOUS
PRECEDENT FOR SUPPLYING
INFORMATION TO THE PRESS.
JOINING ME FROM NEW YORK IS
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN'S SENIOR
LEGAL ANALYST.
FROM WASHINGTON, JOURNALIST AND
MANNING BIOGRAPHER, BOTTOM LINE,
WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF THE VERDICT?
>> IT STRIKES ME AS A JUST
VERDICT.
THIS WAS A TERRIBLE, TERRIBLE
BREACH OF NATIONAL SECURITY.
IT WAS A TREMENDOUS BETRAYAL OF
HARD WORKING FOREIGN SERVICE
OFFICERS WHO PUT THEIR LIVES ON
THE LINE FOR THE SAKE OF THE
UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT AND FOR
WORLD PEACE AND THEY WERE
BETRAYED BY WHAT BRADLEY MANNING
DID.
I DO THINK THE CHARGE OF AIDING
THE ENEMY WAS EXCESSIVE AND THE
JUDGE APPROPRIATELY REJECTED IT.
>> BRADLEY MANNING IS A PROVEN
CRIMINAL AND HE'S GOING TO GO TO
JAIL AND THAT'S WHAT HE DESER
6S.
>> DENVER TO YOU, AS BRADLEY
MANNING'S BIOGRAPHER.
WHEN HE PLEADED GUILTY TO TEN OF
THE CHARGES HE SAID HE MEANT NO
HARM TO THE GOVERNMENT.
HE WENT ON TO SAY, QUOTE, I
BELIEVE IF THE PUBLIC WAS AWARE
OF THE DATA THEY WOULD START A
PUBLIC DEBATE ON THE WARS IN
IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN.
ON THE ONE HAND HE WAS
CONFLICTED ABOUT WHAT WAS
HAPPENING IN IRAQ AND
AFGHANISTAN.
MANNING SEEMED CONFLICTED ABOUT
HIS ROLE AND HIS TREATMENT IN
THE MILITARY.
TELL ME ABOUT THAT.
>> THERE'S NO QUESTION THAT
MARCHING ACTED AS HE DID BECAUSE
HE IS IDEALISTIC AND SOMEWHAT
NAIVE YOUNG MAN.
HE CRIMINALLY LEAKED DOCUMENTS
AS YOU SAID, 3/4 OF A MILLION
DOCUMENTS.
MUCH OF HIS ROLE HAS MADE ABOUT
HIM BEING A CONFLICTED SOLDIER.
I THINK THERE'S SOME TRUTH TO
THAT.
ON THE OTHER HAND, LOST IN THE
BACK AND FORTH ON THAT IS THAT
BRADLEY MANNING WAS QUITE PROUD
OF HIS STAT IT IS AS AN
INTELLIGENCE ANALYST.
I SUSPECT HE REMAINS PROUD TO BE
A SOLDIER.
HE THOUGHT HE WAS DOING THE
RIGHT THING AND DID IT FOR THE
SAME REASONS THAT HE JOINED THE
ARMY TO BEGIN WITH.
HE SAW IT AS A PATRIOTIC ACT TO
BEGIN WITH.
>> DENVER, I WANT TO STAY WITH
YOU.
YOU TALK ABOUT THE SENSE OF
BEING CONFLICTED.
IT'S SINCE COME OUT THAT MANNING
HAD SOME DISCIPLINE PROBLEMS IN
THE ARMY.
WITH EVERYTHING THAT YOU KNOW,
SHOULD ALARM BELLS HAVE BEEN
RINGING BEFORE THIS HAPPENED?
>> YES.
IN FACT ALARM BELLS WERE RUNG
ABOUT BRADLEY MANNING'S SECURITY
CLEARANCE, THEY JUST WEREN'T
LISTENED TO.
>> JEFFREY TOOBIN, WE KNOW THAT
MANNING SAID NO THANK YOU TO HIS
CASE BEING HEARD BY A JURY.
DO YOU THINK THAT WAS A GOOD
DECISION ON HIS PART?
>> PROBABLY.
HE WAS GOING TO JAIL WITH OR
WITHOUT A JURY.
THIS WAS NOT A DIFFICULT CASE TO
PROVE BUT FRANKLY I'M NOT SO
INTERESTED OR WORRIED ABOUT HIS
COMPLEX MOTIVATIONS.
WHAT HE DID WAS A HORRENDOUS
CRIME AND THE MILITARY WAS RIGHT
TO PROSECUTE HIM AND, YOU KNOW,
THIS SORT OF -- HIS
PSYCHOLOGICAL STATE, YOU KNOW,
REALLY WE DON'T CARE ABOUT, YOU
KNOW, MOST CRIMINAL'S
PSYCHOLOGICAL STATE AND I