Because leaks are one of a bureaucracy’s most effective weapons against politicians and other agencies in the great Washington game of CYA. That’s the conclusion one can’t help from drawing after reading Josh Gerstein’s superb article in the New York Sun today:

A lack of cooperation from one or more intelligence agencies led the FBI to abandon several recent criminal investigations into leaks of classified information to the press, records obtained by The New York Sun indicate. In January 2005, a top FBI official asked the Justice Department to close three pending leak inquiries because the “victim agency” repeatedly refused to assist the probes. The FBI’s contact at the agency “has been uncooperative with the investigating field office and on numerous occasions failed to return phone calls or provide the case agent with requested documents pertinent to the investigation,” the memo said, adding that the agency “cancelled personnel interviews, security briefings and meetings at the last minute and failed to reschedule for another time.” “None of the cases can proceed without the cooperation of the substantive unit at the victim agency, therefore the FBI considers all logical leads covered,” the FBI official wrote. Within days or weeks, the cases were closed.

The Sun is taking something of a risk letting Gerstein dig into these stymied leak investigations. No other news organization will touch this story for the simple reason that leaks are good for business. I would imagine that more than a few Beltway reporters are unhappy that Gerstein is rocking the boat.