CQ's Tim Starks brings us the latest on the back-and-forth between the White House and Congressional Republicans over recent leaks that resulted in the publication of classified information that critics claim could jeopardize national security. The bipartisan leadership of the House and Senate Intelligence committees released a joint statement outlining their intent to strengthen their authority via legislation regarding the disclosure of classified information. The most likely vehicle for such legislative language would be the fiscal 2013 intelligence authorization bill, a version of which (HR 4753) has already passed the House. A previous effort to crack down on classified leaks in the fiscal 2011 bill (S 719) was placed on hold by Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., who cited concerns about muzzling legitimate whistleblowers.

Meanwhile, the White House rebutted accusations that it approved leaks about the administration's drone strike and cyberweapons program for political gain, calling such suggestions "grossly irresponsible." But Arizona Sen. John McCain, who has been one of the White House's most vocal critics on the issue, refused to back down. McCain and his Republican colleague Saxby Chambliss of Georgia are seeking a special prosecutor to investigate the leaks, but they are unlikely to find the smoking gun they seek. Anyone with experience in these matters knows there are ways of tacitly approving the release of information without actually authorizing a leak. A more effective tact for Republicans would be to play up the administration's aggressive prosecution of Army Private Bradley Manning and other whistleblowers accused of leaking information with less political upside.

Quotable: “These leaks clearly were not done in the interest of national security or to reveal corrupt or illegal actions about which the public has a right to know, as in the case of legitimate whistleblowers. It is difficult to escape the conclusion that these recent leaks of highly classified information, all of which have the effect of making the president look strong and decisive on national security in the middle of his re-election campaign, have a deeper political motivation.” — McCain. Waxman Wants Royalty Treatment For Web Radio: CQ's Ambreen Ali reports House Energy and Commerce ranking Democrat Henry Waxman of California is looking to level the playing field between Internet radio companies such as Pandora, which last year spent half its revenue on royalties for artists, and local radio stations that are exempted from doing so. Web and satellite radio providers want to see royalty rates reduced, while the recording industry would rather that terrestrial radio stations were also forced to pay the fees. We expect support to grow for the latter, since the recording industry still has more clout than Web radio firms in Washington, and terrestrial radio stations already benefit from advantages such as use of the public airwaves that are unavailable to their newer competitors. Nasdaq to Compensate Facebook Investors: Nasdaq OMX CEO Robert Greifeld told the Wall Street Journal his firm owes investors and traders an apology after bungling Facebook's recent initial public offering due to technical difficulties. On Wednesday Nasdaq said it would set aside $40 million to compensate brokers for their losses on the IPO, $26 million of which would be paid through reduced trading costs. Facebook's shares were up Wednesday after a big market upswing, but they remain significantly below their initial offering price. Obama Courts Hollywood, Again: President Obama made several stops in California yesterday to appear at campaign events, winding up with two star-studded fundraisers in Beverly Hills at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel and the home of "Glee" creator Ryan Murphy. Hollywood remains a crucial part of the president's fundraising base, despite the White House's veto threat against SOPA and PIPA, which have been Hollywood's top legislative priority for the past several years. But the White House's close ties to tinsel town may also prove a liability in the long run, and not just the subject of attacks from Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. Tech companies have watched as this administration has repeatedly come down on the side of content creators seeking strong intellectual property enforcement on the Web. I'll have more on the potential repercussions in an upcoming feature for CQ Weekly. Lawmakers Use Budget to Buy Facebook Ads: CQ's Kerry Young and Rachael Bade report that a debate has sprung up over whether lawmakers should be allowed to use their Congressional budgets to buy Facebook and other Web ads. Rep. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., has introduced an amendment that would ban members from buying such ads, arguing they constitute and unfair campaign advantage and can be very expensive. But online ads could also be considered an update to the longstanding franking privileges enjoyed by members of Congress. A check showed two-thirds of the lawmakers that spent more than $20,000 on mass communications in the first quarter of this year purchased online ads in the previous 12 months. Lawmaker Questions Limited Deployment of Cell Phone Alerts: The chairman of the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness questioned why a system for sending emergency text alerts to the public's cell phones currently covers only half of the country, according to a report from CQ's Jennifer Scholtes. Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla., noted that the system was supposed to be live in April, but FEMA Deputy Administrator Tim Manning said his agency is waiting for 20 states to opt into the voluntary system. CRS on Cybersecurity: The latest Congressional Research Service report is available here (PDF). Obama Re-Nominates Mignon Clyburn to FCC: President Obama announced his intent to renew the term of FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn, the daughter of third-ranking House Democrat James Clyburn. Ms. Clyburn was originally nominated to the FCC by the president in July 2009; her term was set to expire this year. Her background as the former publisher of a newspaper aimed at the African American community in South Carolina sets her apart from her colleagues, who are typically lawyers. Clyburn has taken the liberal position on many issues at the FCC and is currently the agency's strongest advocate for media diversity. However, she is no longer the only minority on the commission thanks to the recent confirmation of Republican Ajit Pai, whose views on media diversity remain largely unknown.