U.S. Secretary of State is Subpoenaed

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, among other American intelligence officials, has been subpoenaed to appear as a witness in a federal espionage case against pro-Israeli lobbyists.

Accused of receiving classified terrorism-related information from a Pentagon official who has already been convicted and relaying it to an Israeli official and the media, the defendants say they were merely fulfilling a customary role as U.S. government go-betweens, according to the Associated Press.

Thus, their attorneys argue, how were they supposed to know their conduct was illegal?

Ruling on the issue today in Alexandria, Va., a Washington, D.C., suburb, U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III said the lobbyists can subpoena Rice and the other officials in an attempt to support this defense argument.