NSA wiretapping: a bigger issue than thought

plonx · 05-11-2006, 03:18 PM

So everyone wondered why the Bush admin had attempted to hide their wiretapping escapades of suspected terrorists. Now it is evident that the wiretapping is on a much grander scale, with the NSA tracking every call it can within our country. Here's the AP article on the subject:

Quote:

The government has been secretly collecting records of ordinary Americans' phone calls in an effort to build a database of every call made within the country, it was reported Thursday.

AT&T, Verizon and BellSouth telephone companies began turning over records of tens of millions of their customers' phone calls to the National Security Agency program shortly after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, said USA Today, citing anonymous sources it said had direct knowledge of the arrangement.

The White House defended its overall eavesdropping program and said no domestic surveillance is conducted without court approval.

"The intelligence activities undertaken by the United States government are lawful, necessary and required to protect Americans from terrorist attacks," said Dana Perino, the deputy White House press secretary, who added that appropriate members of Congress have been briefed on intelligence activities.

n Capitol Hill, Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pennsylvania, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said he would call the phone companies to appear before the panel "to find out exactly what is going on."

Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont, the ranking Democrat on the panel, sounded incredulous about the program and railed against what he called a lack of congressional oversight. He argued that the media was doing the job of Congress.

"Are you telling me that tens of millions of Americans are involved with al Qaeda?" Leahy asked. "These are tens of millions of Americans who are not suspected of anything ... Where does it stop?"

The Democrat, who at one point held up a copy of the newspaper, added: "Shame on us for being so far behind and being so willing to rubber stamp anything this administration does. We ought to fold our tents."

The program does not involve listening to or taping the calls. Instead it documents who talks to whom in personal and business calls, whether local or long distance, by tracking which numbers are called, the newspaper said.

The NSA and the Office of National Intelligence Director did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

NSA is the same spy agency that conducts the controversial domestic eavesdropping program that has been acknowledged by President Bush. The president said last year that he authorized the NSA to listen, without warrants, to international phone calls involving Americans suspected of terrorist links.

The report came as the former NSA director, Gen. Michael Hayden -- Bush's choice to take over leadership of the CIA -- had been scheduled to visit lawmakers on Capitol Hill Thursday. However, the meetings with Republican Sens. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska were postponed at the request of the White House, said congressional aides in the two Senate offices.

The White House offered no reason for the postponement to the lawmakers.

Hayden already faced criticism because of the NSA's secret domestic eavesdropping program. As head of the NSA from March 1999 to April 2005, Hayden also would have overseen the call-tracking program.

The NSA wants the database of domestic call records to look for any patterns that might suggest terrorist activity, USA Today said.

Don Weber, a senior spokesman for the NSA, told the paper that the agency operates within the law, but would not comment further on its operations.

One big telecommunications company, Qwest, has refused to turn over records to the program, the newspaper said, because of privacy and legal concerns.

Inquiry into eavesdropping killed

Meanwhile, the Justice Department has abruptly ended an inquiry into the warrantless eavesdropping program because the NSA refused to grant its lawyers the necessary security clearance. (Full story)

The Justice Department's Office of Professional Responsibility, or OPR, sent a fax to Rep. Maurice Hinchey, D-New York, on Wednesday saying they were closing their inquiry because without clearance their lawyers cannot examine Justice lawyers' role in the program.

Justice Department spokesman Brian Roehrkasse said the terrorist surveillance program "has been subject to extensive oversight both in the executive branch and in Congress from the time of its inception."

Roehrkasse noted the OPR's mission is not to investigate possible wrongdoing in other agencies, but to determine if Justice Department lawyers violated any ethical rules. He declined to comment when asked if the end of the inquiry meant the agency believed its lawyers had handled the wiretapping matter ethically.

foundit66 · 05-11-2006, 04:02 PM

I would have to say "Not without just cause for the specific case, and a warrant."

I say "No" to fishing expeditions where they hope to catch something as they listen to hundred or thousands of conversations.
I say "Yes" to wire-tapping where it involves someBODY (not just ANYbody who happens to be talking to anybody in a foreign country) who is a suspected terrorist.

I think this article makes plain that they're on a fishing expedition with no clue as to whether they'll catch something...

Jefferson · 05-11-2006, 06:31 PM

Good lord you people are funny!

Look more closely at what is REALLY going on.

3 phone companies turned over calling records - you know, where a call came from and went to, NOT THE CONVERSATIONS!

Those phone records are already on record.

But again, they FSA is NOT "listening to conversations". They are simply running numbers through a database. HUGE difference.

In addition, you might want to look at the lady who "broke" this story. You might want to ask yourself what her sourcese of information are, and what is REALLY being said here.

As Shakespeare might write, "Much ado about nothing."

intangible child · 05-16-2006, 02:06 AM

i'm not a Reagan fan, but this was a pretty accurate quote from him!

"The nine most terrifying words in the English language are: 'I'm from the government and I'm here to help.'"---Ronald Reagan

-------------------
"I am not worried about the deficit. It is big enough to take care of itself."---Ronald Reagan

If he got to see this one????????????

It's the Debt . Don't Forget It!!
http://www.uwsa.com/uwsa-usdebt.html

RidinHighSpeeds · 05-16-2006, 06:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by intangible child

i'm not a Reagan fan, but this was a pretty accurate quote from him!

"The nine most terrifying words in the English language are: 'I'm from the government and I'm here to help.'"---Ronald Reagan

-------------------
"I am not worried about the deficit. It is big enough to take care of itself."---Ronald Reagan

If he got to see this one????????????

It's the Debt . Don't Forget It!!
http://www.uwsa.com/uwsa-usdebt.html

Good point.

Jefferson · 05-17-2006, 09:26 AM

Newsflash Girls!!!!!!!!

Now ALL 3 PHONE COMPANIES ARE CLAIMING THEY NEVER TURNED ANY SUCH INFORMATION OVER TO THE NSA.

Is it possible that this whole story - for which you've whipped yourselves into a lather - is pure BS?

hevusa · 05-17-2006, 11:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jefferson

Newsflash Girls!!!!!!!!

Now ALL 3 PHONE COMPANIES ARE CLAIMING THEY NEVER TURNED ANY SUCH INFORMATION OVER TO THE NSA.

Is it possible that this whole story - for which you've whipped yourselves into a lather - is pure BS?

Then why did the president speak about it on national television?