Report: Bush Permitted NSA to Spy in U.S.

AP on Yahoo ^ | 12/15/05 | AP

[jveritas]

If the liberals and their media whores want to make this a scandal and go after President Bush because of it, I will say let the battle begins. There is no way the left wing can win this battle in the public arena no matter what they do. They will be crushed (for the million times) if they wage this battle.

[Sir Gawain]

And once President Hillary abuses these powers I don't want to hear one single peep of protest from freepers like you.

[CommandoFrank]

Nope. NSA can't either.

Wanna bet?

[jveritas]

Ok use the BIG WORDS now. This is an absolutely necessary measure in times of war. FDR did much worse than this, he put the Japanese in a interment camps during WW II.

[logician2u]

What laws were supposedly broken?

Try this one.

[Williams]

Did you notice the total was 500, and it all involved international emails and phone calls, to "dirty" Al Queda numbers? AND the special terrorism court was informed. My BS meter is way going off over this story. Plus it was done right after 9-11, then suspended, and then resumed under new guidelines. I'm not convinced anything was done illegally.

Note the big point of the article seems to be that the NSA did this instead of say the FBI. I'm not sure even the NYT is claiming this activity violated any law.

[Sir Gawain]

And when is this war going to end?

[TheBigB]

I'd be happy to let 'em listen in on my phone calls. Although they'd get bored pretty quickly. :)

[jveritas]

To your dismay Hillary Clinton will never be President. Any person with a "political" IQ over 80 knows that this will not happen.

[DoughtyOne]

Thanks for the comments. I didn't seem them until just now.

[jveritas]

When we achieve complete victory.

[Sir Gawain]

Maybe but can you guarantee that no Democrat will ever get elected president and turn these powers against conservatives? Are you really that naive? Have you forgotten Clinton already?

[Sir Gawain]

Nice dodge.

[Adiemus]

Can we count on the NY Times to advertise to the world the U.S. War on Terror strategies?

The larger issue here is that we have a number of supposed "trusted" individuals spilling classified like there is no tomorrow. Why are these jerks not in prison? That is supposedly what the consequences of intentional disclosure are.

Who in the Federal Government is allowing all this to go on unchecked?

[Republican Wildcat]

The Times said reporters interviewed nearly a dozen current and former administration officials about the program and granted them anonymity because of the classified nature of the program.

More illegal activity from "anonymous sources." The press gets up in arms about a non-leak about Joe Wilson, but this kind of blatant leaking that does in fact harm our national security is hailed by the press because they can use it to damage Bush.

How many terrorists have been tipped off by this report and will change their methods of communicating?

[jveritas]

In a historical and great war like the one we are fighting against terrorism no true leader can give a date when the war will end. Did FDR give the American people a date when WW II will end? Did Woodraw Wilson give a date when WWI will end? or Abraham Lincoln about the civil war? or George Washington about the war of independence?

[VeniVidiVici]

A copy of declassed USSID 18 and a few other docs? Knowing how the MSM likes to cause trouble by not specifying anything, again, I ask, what laws were broken?

How do we know what the NSA was listening to required a warrant, first of all?

[GLDNGUN]

So basically you'd rather have security than freedom

What freedom are you reffering to? Whose freedom was taken away?

[logician2u]

Did you read past the title?

Read at least Section 1 and Section 2 and you might have a clue as to why the NSAers refused to follow orders.

[VeniVidiVici]

Ok. Assuming we *are* talking about USSID 18, here are the sections you told me to read:

SECTION 1 - REFERENCES

1.1. (FOUO) References

a. DoD Regulation 5240.1-R.
b. NSA/CSS Directive No. 10-30, dated 24 March 1980.

c. Executive Order 12036, United States Intelligence Activities, 24 January 1978.

d. 50 U S.C. 1801, Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978, Public Law No. 95-511 (see Annex A).



SECTION 2 - PURPOSE AND APPLICABILITY


2.1. (FOUO) This USSID implements the provisions of DoD Regulation 5240.1-R for the USSS. It prescribes general policy and SIGINT operating policy, and provides procedures and assigns responsibilities to ensure that the SIGINT mission of the National Security Agency/Central Security Service is conducted in a manner that guarantees proper safeguards to the rights and privacy of U S. persons under applicable law, executive branch directives, internal directives, and policy.

The annexes to USSID 18 contain procedures that must be followed for the specialized SIGINT operations and targets to which they pertain. The other policies and procedures in this USSID provide guidance in applying specific restrictions in SIGINT operations to targeting, collection, selection, storage, and dissemination of information, and the maintenance of data bases that may relate to U.S. persons. The policies and procedures herein apply to all elements of the USSS.

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