WASHINGTON, June 9 (UPI) — The chairman of the U.S. House Intelligence Committee said bad information was muddling the budding debate over massive data surveillance.
Appearing on ABC’s “This Week,” Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Mich., defended National Security Agency access to huge volumes of telephone and Internet communications as an effective anti-terrorism tool that included ample privacy safeguards.
“The National Security Agency does not listen to Americans’ phone calls and it is not reading Americans’ emails,” Rogers told ABC. “None of these programs allow that.”
Rogers chided a reporter for the British newspaper The Guardian for not having “a clue how this thing works” and called for The Guardian’s so-called whistle-blower source to be arrested for exposing details of a system the United States created to plug the intelligence holes that made the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks possible.
Sen. Diane Feinstein, D-Calif., chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said NSA activities are limited by strict privacy protections for American citizens, but she pointed out U.S. law enforcement agencies are allowed to access telephone records in their investigations.
“The only thing taken … is not content of a conversation, but the information that is generally on your telephone bill, which has been held not to be private personal property by the Supreme Court,” Feinstein said. “If there is strong suspicion that a terrorist outside of the country is trying to reach someone on the inside of the country, those (telephone) numbers then can be obtained.”
Copyright 2013 United Press International, Inc. (UPI).
When this blowhard runs for re election will it be the socialist party? – has to be !
” ” U.S. House intelligence” – is that an oxymoron?”
I don’t believe it is. There are many good people out there, who work in intelligence for our country, who despite claims to the contrary, produce a useful product, the shear volume of which, would boggle the mind. And therein lies the rub. What is credible, what is actionable, and how does one prioritize it all?
Those involved are not buffoons, nor is the scheme haphazard. Unless you believe in blind luck, screening information, because of it’s volume, has to have distinct sets of parameters, otherwise it is useless piles of twisted electrons.
The other end of the coin of course is that security agencies and the military do nothing, which satisfies those who want privacy at all costs. But should something happen, should they be put a risk, and the same folk complain loudly about the lack of knowledge and action towards those same agencies.
One cannot have it both ways.
And if we believe all of this, they’ve also got a brige in Brooklyn they would like to sell us. ” U.S. House intelligence” – is that an oxymoron?
I for one DO NOT believe everything the government says. Nor do I believe their statements here. Do I think they should spy on citizens??? Undecided. If Im actually innocent then I dont have to worry. Problem is this. As we have seen here in the blogs, people can twist words around so that a totally different meaning comes out. when spying on someone and taking a conversation out of context, trouble can ensue.
If you’re undecided then you don’t deserve any liberty. Period.
If you are willing to sit back on your collective ass and trust everything the government says and does then YOU, jesus, are the one that does not deserve liberty.
your name should be JESUS FKN CHRIST cause you are a big FN idiot. reread my post you dumb shit. get a life or shut the hell up.
The day you and the government don’t see eye to eye on “innocent” will be one hell of a day for you, and by that time it will be too late for you.
@50 Miles-I personally do not believe anything this administration says. I have been around a long time and have never seen anyone lie as much as they do. I expect politicians to lie a little as I think they are taught that in politician school but never like this. It reminds my of our current city administration and their lackeys. You just can’t believe anything they say.
I think I heard a gnat above your post. I need to go and find my flyswatter. OHHH BTW its not just the current Prez. We are still looking for those WMDs.