Bradley Manning Offers Guilty Pleas--and Key Statement

UPDATE #5   Manning's full statement in one place here.  Among other things, interesting blow-by-blow on his viewing and response to "Collateral Murder" video and his research into the incident and how "embedded" journo David Finkel had handled it.


UPDATE #4  Recess arrives.  Judge has accepted Manning's guilty pleas--but, sadly, prosecutors still plan to press ahead with the many other, in some cases more serious,  charges.


UPDATE #3 As you'll see below, Bradley Manning claims he called the NYT's public editor in early 2010  before leaking docs to WikiLeaks--he left a phone message and got no reply.  Mike Calderone of Huff Post has asked the public ed. at that time, Clark Hoyt, about this, and Hoyt has no recollection.  Ironically, Hoyt had led the much-lauded Knight Ridder office in D.C. which led the way in providing the rare skeptical looks at the Bush claims on WMD in Iraq. 

UPDATE #2   Charlie Savage's report in NYT.   Manning can not or will not say for certain that the WikiLeaks person he talked to was Julian Assange.   He pronounced his name "As-sangh-jay." New York magazine now with a summary.  


UPDATE #1:  Kevin Gosztola is tweeting Manning's statement.  Great stuff on his efforts to leak the "war logs" to mainstream news outlets.   "Bradley Manning contacted WaPo, NY Times and Politico before providing war logs  to WikiLeaks....Manning said he talked to person at WaPo who he did not think took him seriously  ...Bradley Manning contacted NYT & left message it was very important. He had information. He left email/Skype address. No response....Bradley Manning tried to contact POLITICO. Weather conditions hampered travel to office....Manning on 'Collateral Murder' video: 'Most alarming was the bloodlust' of the air weapons team."

Charlie Savage of NYT tweets:  "Manning decided 'world would be btr place' if public saw State cables & sensitive ones not in SIPRNet--US might be 'embarrassed' but no harm....Manning said talked extensively w/ someone he assumed was Assange & later was disillusioned about the friendship, but WL never pressured him...Manning said no one from WL pressured him to send more info. 'I take full responsibility.'"  Also:   "Manning attempt to call NYT = calling public editor #; got automatically routed to a voicemail that wasnt rtrnd. Not clear reached newsroom."

Earlier: Kevin Gosztola, co-author of our book on Bradley Manning, is covering his dramatic day in court today.  Follow it here.  He has just pleaded guilty to several charges, as expected, but NOT to release of one of the attack videos.  Now he is about to read statement.   Our book here.  Today:

Between supporters, commentators and open government advocates, there have been multiple assertions, claims and intimations about what was going through Pfc. Bradley Manning’s mind when he released information to the media organization, WikiLeaks. There will be no need to sift through chat logs and anecdotes from friends, family and soldiers who served alongside him after today’s court martial proceedings at Fort Meade. Manning is pleading guilty to committing some offenses and will be sharing what was going through his mind when he decided to send the information to WikiLeaks.