Posted on 07/08/2006 12:26:26 PM PDT by Sub-Driver
Ally Told Bush Spying Projects Might Be Illegal By ERIC LICHTBLAU and SCOTT SHANE
WASHINGTON, July 8 — In a sharply worded letter to President Bush in May, an important Congressional ally charged that the administration might have violated the law by failing to inform Congress of some secret intelligence programs and risked losing Republican support on national security matters.
The letter from Representative Peter Hoekstra of Michigan, the Republican chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, did not specify the intelligence activities that he believed had been hidden from Congress.
But Mr. Hoekstra, who was briefed on and supported the National Security Agency's domestic surveillance program and the Treasury Department's tracking of international banking transactions, clearly was referring to programs that have not been publicly revealed.
Recently, after the harsh criticism from Mr. Hoekstra, intelligence officials have appeared at two closed committee briefings to answer questions from the chairman and other members. The briefings appear to have eased but not erased the concerns of Mr. Hoekstra and other lawmakers about whether the administration is sharing information on all of its intelligence operations.
A copy of the four-page letter dated May 18, which has not been previously disclosed, was obtained by The New York Times.
"I have learned of some alleged intelligence community activities about which our committee has not been briefed," Mr. Hoesktra wrote. "If these allegations are true, they may represent a breach of responsibility by the administration, a violation of the law, and, just as importantly, a direct affront to me and the members of this committee who have so ardently supported efforts to collect information on our enemies."
He added: "The U.S. Congress simply should not have to play Twenty Questions to get the information that it deserves under our Constitution."
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
"clearly was referring to programs that have not been publicly revealed"
Looks that way to me!
The source is the NYT. Wait for Hoekstra's comments after the fact before drawing any conclusions. My guess is he's misquoted here.
I think the main question is who had access to this letter?
Just what I was thinking. I can't imagine that Hoekstra would want this to be made public. But I could be wrong.
>>Just what I was thinking. I can't imagine that Hoekstra would want this to be made public. But I could be wrong.<<
Yeah, but anybody from the adminsitration releasing a letter like this would be a total traitor to his boss.
Looks like Hoekstra is the leaker too. Or one of his staffers.
these ba$tard$ never quit with the leaks, do they ?
Like ive been saying for a while, and nobody seems to be talking about, the leaks are clearly from staffers on the Senate Intel committee. I have been betting on Rockefeller. It would be bad if it turned out to be a Republican Senator.
It seems the Admin. is in a bind. Being open with Congress virtually guarantees leaks from the disloyal Demonrats. Also, Congress has no Constitutional right to micromanage the conduct of war.
Good God! Who's the Slimes leak in the Bush Administration? Someone at State? CIA? FBI?
Again?....drip, drip, drip, drip.
Why should they? We're clearly not serious about catching or punishing leakers.
I'd drive 90mph every time I got on the freeway if traffic cops didn't pull people over for speeding. Same principal applies here.
It may be legal for them to print classified information, but it should be 100% illegal for them to conceal their sources. We need a law to that effect.
That way, the media could still warn the American public in the event that a real whistleblower showed up with evidence of real crimes, but it would be a huge deterrant to partisan hacks who damage national security just to hurt people who's politics they don't like.
I will not support any Republican who does not support President Bush. Give no money to the Republican National Committee any any of the generic GOP congressional fund raising groups. Contribute directly only to candidates who support the President and support defending this country again terror attacks.
""A copy of the four-page letter dated May 18, which has not been previously disclosed, was obtained by The New York Times""
Translation: Hoekstra or his aide handed it to us, and in return we give him positive NY Times exposure.
OK..Is he saying that the surveillance is itself illegal or that not briefing his committee is illegal?
He's saying, "...me, me, me...I, I, I..."
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