worst-performing schools. could they spark a nationwide education revolution? welcome to the journal editorial report. wikileaks founder julian assange faces extradition, some americans are demanding he be tried in the united states for the release of thousands of state department cables but can he be prosecuted under american law? and should he be? a former attorney general of the united states souns me now. judge? >> well, great to have you back here. >> good morning. >> your successor, eric holder says his department is investigating whether to prosecute a -- assang skpe. would like to. >> i'd be looking at two sections of what is called espionage act. one criminalizes the circulation the publication of defense-related information and other criminalizes the publication lix of classified information. >> this is the espionage act of 1917, a world war ii statute? an oldy but goody what. do you have to prove to get a conviction on the espionage act? you have to prove the leaks damaged national security. have you to prove that they were done with innocent t to -- intent to damage the united states. you have to prove in order to get there is one of those actions -- section that's carries death penalty. if you prove a dealt of the leaks was to disclose identity of the u.s. agent and an agent lost his life, then a penalty up to death may be imposed. >> what would impact of a -- on the prosecution be if you get a comment like we had last week, but defense secretary robert gates said some of the criticism of this is overwraugt, some of the fears about the damage done is overwrought? >> it would hurt the prupgs potentially. but it would not certainly not bar the prosecution. >> the espionage act never has been used before. to my knowledge. you can correct me. as far as i've looked back, never been used against a publisher. not even in world war ii when chicago tribune disclosed we'd suggested we'd broken the japanese code after the battle of midway. fdr decided not to prosecute. why would you make an exception in this case? >> well, reason that they decided not to prosecute in world war i sismt not because the statute didn't apply but rather because japanese apparently hadn't picked up on the story. they'd read the tribute there. their tribute must have lapsed. i don't know. they didn't change codes and felt if they prosecuted the colonel that would have made ate parent we -- the publisher of the tribune we'd broken the code and therefore, would it have made it worse from a national security standpoint. so they stopped the investigation before the return of an indictment. nothing to do with the question of whether to prosecute or not, legally. >> assange is going claim he's a publisher. >> i add one more thing. that is, in the disclosures, elsberg disclose you'res in 1970s, the majority of the supreme court said they would not stop publication in advance, question of whether they can do prosecution afterwards was a different thing. so they left that possibility. >> a majority of the court has never taken a position on the espionage act and whether it's actually would violate first amendment. and that is an open question, i guess. and and that is the question. >> do you think it was that? >> why? >> because the first amendment doesn't protect speech. that causes certain defined injury. it doesn't protect prosecution for libel or prosecution for shouting fire in a crowded theater. doesn't protect prosecution for fraud. it's interesting form you'llation in the first amendment says congress make no law abridging not -- doesn't say abridging freedom of speech. says the freedom of speech known at the time and has been known, since. ie, freedom of speech within rational limits. >> a lot of publishers would argue if you go after assange how do you stop at him? and not go after, say, "new york times" or other newspapers that might have published cables as well? with a little more responsibility, sorting them out a little better? >> there is so you'd not stop at julian assange? >> in the abstract, no. i think that in this case boy stop with julian assange and those acting in concert with him. >> so you would say because the times is just republishing it perhaps they're not as culpable? >> the disstix is that it is easier from a policy standpoint to prosecute assange. there is a clearer case with respect to assang well. regard to the times, i think i would hold back. >> let me ask you. a related but different question. you've been in the government and seen what is classified late senator from new york you say the government just keeps too many secrets. do you agree with that? >> yes. though ought to declassify more things so we can focus on the secrets protecting secrets we need? >> i think that would it help. i think that it would also help to put controls in same way that what you use your credit card, you get a call asking whether vacation in bahamas or bought a house worth of stereos. there is controls should show someone in toll leado is dumping 500,000 documents. all right. fascinating issue and no doubt going to be interesting to see how this goes, thanks for joining us. >> thanks for having me. >> when we come back, president obama's tax cut deal. the white house selling it to skeptics as a stimulus. but is it? 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joining the panel this week "wall street journal" columnist dan henninger, columnist mary anastasia o'grady. and steve moore. looks like most of this is an extension of tax status quo. how much stimulus is in there? >> usually stimulus is considered government spending. only in washington can letting people keep their own money be considered government spending. makes you wonder who these people -- whose money do they think it is? >> right. >> i think the stimulus affects may come from extending unemployment benefits because that is government spending. i think not imposing a tax increase which is basically what is here, it's going to just extend the status quo. as far as payroll tax cut goes i'm skeptical about that because it's temporary. >> for one year. it's on the employee side. >> yes. >> so worker saves money that. puts more money in their pockets. but does it give business anymore innocent dwroif hire? >> not only that. i don't think it does. i think there is evidence so though people -- people see a temporary increase in income they don't necessarily spend that. they use that to pay down debt or to get ready when income goes back down. i don't think it means goitsing to go into spending and consummation. >> steve, a lot of people are saying some people on the right that this is -- this is a real change of inelect wall course for the administration. is it a supply side tax-cutting strategy? >> well, first of all, paul i'd like to make a suggestion we've expunked from our vocabulary the term stimulus. it's become discredited in the last stimulus we've had that was overa trillion dollars lost two million jobs. i hate that word. >> okay. but this is what you would call a supply-side pro-growth tax strategy? >> i think it will help the economy. and quite a bit, in fact. i'm very bullish on this plan. it's only keeping rates where they are. if we hadn't done this, we would have talked about the dividend tax. so i do think that this really -- a agree with larry somers i agree this reduces chances of a double dip recession, it gives some businesses and individuals and workers some certainty about what taxes will be next year. >> but only for two years. >> true that. is true. it only avoids a tax increase, steve. doesn't cut taxes any further other than the, one two, small points. is this your idea of a growth policy? >> not my idea of a growth policy. that is an important disdis stimpx there. is a group in washington sort of presiding over a more abundant economy. their idea of growth is that the patient comes out and opens his eyes. i don't think that that is what we're talking about in terms of real economic growth. there is nothing that is going to make the economy grow in a strong rate. i think what republicans should do is take this and say they'll build on this as a basis for growing the economy. >> but don't oversell it. just bringing the economy out of the coma. >> can i have -- go ahead, steve. >> i just want to add one point. you know, everybody in washington, at least the people on left keep describing unemployment insurance extensions as a stimulus to the economy this, will reduce jobs and reduce employment f you pay people not to work you don't get more jobs. we've had good evidence on our page showing we probably added one, or two points to the unemployment rate because we're giving people long benefits. >> they claim it will boost consummation -- consumption somehow. >> why are house democrats so angry about this? >> this is religion. and if you notice... >> taxes on the rich are religion. >> they keep repeating this is somehow giving very rich a special break. i think the question we have to ask in terms of understanding how good this will be for the economy is, does it put more money in the hands of private sector? the private sector is the place -- wealth is created. >> that is on that means it's a deal probably worth taking. >> i think that that is the positive. negative is the temporary aspect of it. businesses do not make decisions based on one year out z particularly in highering. once you hire someone it's not so easy to get rid of them. i think in terms of just like dan says, keeping patient alive, it's all good. but in terms of making u.s. economy more competitive, which is what we need to do, no. >> and why would the president agree to kick this down the road for only two years? putting it into the middle of the 2012 election campaign to relitigate all of this? >> well, because i believe he does want to fight the upper bracket thing. he said woe repeel it if reelected. >> he thinks it's good politic? >> and there is an alternative view of how an economy grows. it does not include lower tax rates for people in upper brackets. he believes that and wants to fight on it. >> and he thinks this economy is better in 2012. and this republican argument, that card will be gone, they can fight on fairness and win? >> i can't wait to find out. >> i don't know. your taxes may go up as a result. >> when we come back, california parents pull the trigger on school reform, taking the fate of one failing public school out of the hands of a teachers' union could. it spark an education revolution? new regenerist micro-sculpting serum for firmer skin in 5 days. pretty heavy lifting for such a lightweight. 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[ male announcer ] so don't blame it on aging. talk to your doctor and go to isitlowt.com to find out more. well, it could be the shot heard around the education world. this week in compton, california 260 parents pulled a first-ever parent trigger in a fwoid trance form their children's failing public school under a state law, parents can trigger a change in governor nans in 1300 california schools if they failed to make adequate yearly pro gress for four years in a row f 51% of the parents sign a petition they can shut the school down. shake up administration, or invite a charter school to take over. compton's mckinley elementary school made adequate progress only once in 2003, in the bottom 10% of schools state wide. 60 parents of the parents turned in petitions exercising that right to take over the school and turn it over to a charter school operator. for more, i'm join bid jason riley z assistant editorial features editor. david, you've been following this, where does this movement get its start? >> it began with a liberal los angeles parents group called parent revolution them conceived the idea and got it passed into law in january as part of a package of reforms through the state legislature with a liberal democratic sponsor. >> this is a fascinating thing about this to me. mostly liberals and democrats have opposed school choice and yet this is one ambitious school choice proposals around because parents can trigger it. you don't have to have a public debate. >> exactly. it doesn't rely on circumstance that's education has relied on 10 or more years, the right mayor and school chancellor and mayor bloomberg who of course left her job. >> charter school replaces public schools z they have to still educate them. do they get the same amount of money from the state and local school board. >> what we can see with this option is a new way for schools to be -- started it worked the same way. except for the difference mentioned which is that other areas have to hold lottery autos that that is right. >> right. >> because they don't have space. schools that are charter schools, that have this trigger option will take all students. no students from failing schools will be banished. >> what's happening in compton? what happened this week? >> what happened on tuesday is that 260 parents, 61% of the parent body went down to the superintendent office and began the charter process whachl they have called for in the petition is that this group operator running a couple charters successfully, so they have petitions for this. it's specific competition. and there is a transformation for the charter to come in in this case. what we expect to happen if lawsuits there, will be challenges and unions will challenge this, and trying to stop it. but if the law says what it means, means what it says they should be successful. they've got 61% of the support. >> this is quite clear. >> jason you've been following education reform for a long time in school choice. and what do you make of this reform? >> to the extent this puts more choices in the hands of parents and kids, it's all g problem is that teachers union has a life grip on local govern nans. the system is set up to benefit adults running the system versus the kids. and there is fewer jobs. and there is to the extent this gives parents the ability to make choices, it's all good. i mean, a lot of it, i think will depend on the trigger that they decide to use. if they decide to use it. and parents had the option since 2002. very few have done it. so first you'll need parents to take advantage of the new move. >> there is a trigger that will matter. a lot of the turn around don't have a good track record here. and there is bringing in one of the networks to run it like a democracy as a much more successful track record. >> and charter in this case is a good track record? >> yi oo. thank you both. we have to take one more break. when we come back, hits and misses of the week. ck, our hits and misses of the week. 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