State Department sacks two for Obama passport breach

0 Comments | AFP, March, 2008

WASHINGTON (AFP) — The heated Democratic campaign for the White House took on a bizarre wrinkle Thursday with word that two State Department contractors were fired for inappropriate access to Barack Obama's passport files.

The State Department was quick to characterize it as an "imprudent curiosity" but vowed to investigate, while the Obama campaign accused Republican President George W. Bush's administration of an "outrageous" breach of privacy for political ends.

The Democratic Illinois senator, who is locked in a tight race against rival Hillary Clinton for the party's nod, issued a scathing statement admonishing the Bush administration for showing "little regard" for citizens' rights.

Two contractors were dismissed and a third was disciplined, department...