Rice defends Bush decision on eavesdropping in US

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20051218/pl_nm/security_nsa_dc;_ylt=An_E91YpaHAzRENO1ejgOz2s0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTA3b2NibDltBHNlYwM3MTY-
Rice defends Bush decision on eavesdropping in US

By Jackie Frank Sun Dec 18, 1:51 PM ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Sunday President George W. Bush's secret order to allow spying on people in the United States was legal and necessary to prevent terrorism, but lawmakers from both parties called for Congress to investigate.

Rice, speaking on "Fox News Sunday," said disclosure of the eavesdropping could jeopardize terrorism investigations.

"The more we get the exposure of these very sensitive programs, the more it undermines our ability to follow terrorists, to know about their activities," she said.

Rice said Bush used his authority so "people could not communicate inside the United States about terrorist activity with people outside the United States, leaving us vulnerable to terrorist attack."......

... even when he's wrong.

And she didn't even have her facts straight.

The more she opens her mouth the more off-the-wall B.S. comes out of it. I suppose it would be pretty tough to come up with a logical defense for the all the crap this administration pulls.

....After initially refusing to comment on a New York Times report on the covert program, Bush said on Saturday that after the September 11 attacks, he had authorized the National Security Agency "to intercept the international communications of people with known links to al Qaeda and related terrorist organizations."

Rice reiterated Bush's statement that the wiretapping of telephone conversations and other communications was legal and did not violate the U.S. Constitution.

A 1978 law, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, makes it illegal to spy on U.S. citizens in the United States without court approval.

On NBC's "Meet the Press," Rice said the program was carefully controlled, with a limited scope focusing only on those believed to have links to al Qaeda terrorists........

Sen. John McCain (news, bio, voting record), an Arizona Republican, said, "I take him (Bush) at his word" that the order was critical to saving lives and consistent with U.S. law and the Constitution."

"The president, I think, has the right to do this, and yet, I don't know why he didn't go" through court procedures, McCain told ABC's "This Week."

seems to prove it.

the article said that they spied on hundreds of thousands of people. Here in the U.S.

There aren't that many A-Qaida operatives here. That's why this whole argument is a lie. If it had been a small number, I might have been able to accept it.

But it's still illegal.

didn't really cover these new situations. I still am amazed at that one. I don't really recall any authority that the President was given to ignore laws because of their age! The Patriot Act didn't have anything in it repealing FISA, did it?

This from an administration that "knew" Saddam had WMDs. :sarcasm:

It makes me wonder just how low the bar is set for probable cause by this Administration?

The documented facts specifically set out that we are not safer from terrorists, despite all their underhanded and illegal actions.

Further, this is only what we know that he has done. Considering the character of george w. bush, the reality of the extent of his criminal activity is likely far, far worse.

How hard is that? Plenty hard for a King, or somebody who is eavesdropping on people he has no right, or reason to. Why was he afraid to go to the secret court? Who was he spying on? If it were terrorists, the court would have happily condoned his actions with a warrant, either before, or within 72 hours after the event. He has no excuse.

I guess having to prove a reason creates problems.

because he was spying on those he shouldn't be. Clearly, this has to be the case. There is no other reason for him to avoid the legal protections afforded to him in these circumstances unless he had something to hide. And... if 72 hours wasn't enough for him, he clearly knows how to get the laws changed. He is hiding something and somebody knows it, that's why this was leaked. Somebody's had enough.

was turned down. Here's a link to it: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x5627809

I don't know if the poster is really onto something or not. But if it's true, Bush is finally toast, imho. To have those who really do have the proper legal authority to authorize the spying (when and if it is genuinely needed) say no, but then go ahead anyway would not be something he could talk his way out of.

On edit: post #12 in this thread seems to indicate there was additional action on this and that an appeals court allowed the powers that Bush claims. I just haven't followed it closely enough to know.

I'd sure like someone to explain all this further.

if the opportunity presented itself.

did? Spy on the citizens of Iraq? Is bush no better than sadamn hussein?

Wait a minute I don't think we have a democracy anymore

is the fucking moustache.

In First-Ever Ruling, Secret Appeals Court Allows Expanded Government Spying on U.S. Citizens (11/18/2002)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WASHINGTON - Ruling for the first time in its history, the ultra-secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review today gave the green light to a Justice Department bid to broadly expand its powers to spy on U.S. citizens.

"We are deeply disappointed with the decision, which suggests that this special court exists only to rubberstamp government applications for intrusive surveillance warrants," said Ann Beeson, litigation director of the Technology and Liberty Program of the American Civil Liberties Union.

"As of today," she said, "the Attorney General can suspend the ordinary requirements of the Fourth Amendment in order to listen in on phone calls, read e-mails, and conduct secret searches of Americans' homes and offices."

At issue is whether the Constitution and the USA PATRIOT Act adopted by Congress after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks permit the government to use looser foreign intelligence standards to conduct criminal investigations in the United States.

Last May, in a historic first, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act court (FISA) made public a unanimous decision rejecting the government's bid for expanded spying powers. After the Justice Department appealed, the ACLU was granted permission to file a friend-of-the-court brief in the appeals court, together with the Center for Democracy and Technology, the Center for National Security Studies, the Electronic Privacy Information Center, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and the Open Society Institute.

SNIP

http://www.aclu.org//privacy/spying/15189prs20021118.html

If the Attorney General and the Justice Department were given this new authority to spy on U.S. citizens, why would Bush use the NSA to do it? And wouldn't the Attorney General have to go on record as suspending the Fourth Amendment requirements, with reasons given?

the more i think this is a sneaky attempt to solidify bush's 'imperial powers'