Category Archives for NSA / FISA
From the “yeah, but at least they aren’t SHREDDING THE CONSTITUTION!” files
TweetBring on the changeyness and the hopeitude!: A closed-door caucus of House Democrats last Wednesday took a risky political course. By four to one, they instructed Speaker Nancy Pelosi to call President Bush’s bluff on extending the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance … Continue reading
FISA Versa?
TweetGlenn Greenwald, in full crow, writes of the re-connection of the President and FISA over the (remarkably) controversial NSA surveillance program: For those people (as opposed to the Bush followers who support anything the administration does no matter what and … Continue reading
The “New” NSA Kerfuffle, Day 2
TweetEven as a Washington Post/ABC News poll—in itself a bit deceiving (on which, more later)—reveals that 66% of Americans “said they would not be bothered if NSA collected records of personal calls they had made,” many of the usual suspects … Continue reading
“NSA has massive database of Americans’ phone calls” (UPDATED)
TweetMore attempts by our “adversarial” press (and their leak-happy counterparts in the CIA) to gin up controversy, this time, presumably, to try to scuttle the appointment of Gen Michael Hayden as DCI. From USA Today: The National Security Agency has … Continue reading
Sure, it’s idiotic. But at least he’s going about it correctly.
TweetFrom AP/Breitbart, “Sen. Specter Threatens to Block NSA Funds”: Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter said Thursday he is considering legislation to cut off funding for the Bush administration’s secret domestic wiretapping program until he gets satisfactory answers about it … Continue reading
NSA / FISA follow-up follow up
TweetFrom Powerline, who posts more of the transcript, and AJ Strata, who concludes that It was not actually the fact that NSA bypassed FISA—it was actually that Bush was opening the NSA leads to FBI investigation which were making their … Continue reading
NSA / FISA follow-up: when narratives compete (UPDATED)
TweetBoth Powerline and AJ Strata are looking into an important NSA/FISA-related story that is (shockingly!) being interpreted differently by the NYT and the Washington Times. First, here’s John Hinderaker: Yesterday, five former judges of the FISA court testified before the … Continue reading
NSA program (de)liberation?
TweetIn a change of course, the Bush administration on Wednesday and Thursday offered new operational details to the House and Senate Intelligence Committees on the NSA foreign intelligence surveillance program, with press secretary Scott McClellan suggesting on Thursday that the … Continue reading
One, two, three, war, what the hell’s impeachment for?—the sequel
TweetAs a follow-up to their Thursday editorial calling for the abolition of FISA (which I commented on at length, then later updated to counter a charge characterizing my position on the NSA controversy as “separtation of powers is stupid”—the precise … Continue reading
One two three war, what the hell’s impeachment for? [VIOLENTLY UPDATED]
TweetFrom today’s WSJ (subscription only). “Abolish FISA”: Whatever happened to “impeachment”? Only two months ago, that was the word on leading Democratic lips as they assailed President Bush for “illegal” warrantless NSA wiretaps against al Qaeda suspects. But at Monday’s … Continue reading
