White House reused e-mail tapes
The White House has acknowledged recycling its backup computer tapes of e-mail before October 2003, raising the possibility that many electronic messages — including those pertaining to the CIA leak case — have been taped over and are gone forever.
The disclosure came minutes before midnight Tuesday under a court-ordered deadline that forced the White House to reveal information it has previously refused to provide.
Among the e-mails that could be lost are messages swapped by any White House officials involved in discussions about leaking the identity of CIA officer Valerie Plame.
Backup tapes are the last line of defense for saving electronic records.
Separately, the statement reveals the extent to which the White House is apparently unable to answer how many e-mails are missing from White House servers.
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