Hahaha wait, no

... it's not funny.

Tom Tomorrow notes (to his mailing list):

If this story doesn't blow over entirely, I'm sure we'll all spend a lot of time debating the specifics of who said what.   Right now, the most important specific fact that I can see is that the AP story DID NOT MENTION the fact that there was a double agent inside al Qaeda -- that nugget of information, which is apparently the very harmful leak which led to this latest instance of government overreach, was revealed on a conference call after the AP story ran -- by John Brennan, who is now Director of CIA.

Yeah. The main thing about the AP records grab is that it's part of a massive, chilling crackdown by this administration on whistleblowers - though Senator and then-candidate Obama praised them, now-president Obama doesn't want anything to impede his secrecy. And he'll apparently stop at very little to keep it.

Check out this Salon article by Kevin Gozstola, asking "Who is Jay Carney kidding?" Highlight:

The Obama administration has not maintained any kind of a reasonable balance. The framing by the administration, where it is suggested that freedom must be balanced against national security interests, is not only a false choice but also a tension sustained to give the administration cover as it expands and claims new powers.

Carney and the White House might be trying to kid us, but the thin is - it's no joke.