'Lobby' Case Seen as Part Of Campaign To Tighten Control on Official Secrets - Forward Newspaper Online

'Lobby' Case Seen as Part Of Campaign To Tighten Control on Official Secrets - Forward Newspaper Online: "Although Franklin's prison sentence was low in relation to the federal guidelines for the three felonies of which he was convicted, some observers viewed his 151-month sentence as harsh. Such a long prison term will add to the 'chilling effect' that the Franklin-Aipac case already has had on relations between government officials and nongovernmental organizations, both Jewish and non-Jewish, said Abraham Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League.

'This creates a situation where if you meet with a government official, you are at your own peril,' Foxman said. 'Are you supposed to ask the official, 'Is this classified?' 'Is that unclassified?'' Franklin's sentencing, he said, 'has made this more serious than we had thought before.' The chilling effect, Foxman said, would particularly impact lobbying groups. 'If you add to this the atmosphere against lobbying' that is now plaguing America, 'then you really don't know what the lines are, what the parameters are' in terms of relations with government officials, he said."