Posted on 05/13/2013 5:59:46 PM PDT by jazusamo
The White House on Monday distanced President Obama from the Department of Justice’s seizure of Associated Press telephone records.
“Other than press reports, we have no knowledge of any attempt by the Justice Department to seek phone records of the AP,” White House press secretary Jay Carney said in a statement.
Carney said the White House had no involvement in the Justice effort.
“We are not involved in decisions made in connection with criminal investigations, as those matters are handled independently by the Justice Department,” he said.
The Justice Department said in a letter to the AP on Friday that it had gathered records on at least 20 office, cell phone, and home phone numbers — including the AP's desk in the House of Representatives press gallery.
The AP believes the records seizure was related to a leak investigation regarding a 2012 story about the CIA foiling a bomb plot in Yemen. The Obama administration has aggressively investigated the disclosure of classified anti-terror information in recent years, subpoenaing journalists from the New York Times and Washington Post.
In a letter of protest sent to Attorney General Eric Holder on Monday, AP President Gary Pruitt said there could be “no possible justification for such an overbroad collection of the telephone communications.”
“These records potentially reveal communications with confidential sources across all of the newsgathering activities undertaken by the AP during a two-month period, provide a road map to AP's newsgathering operations and disclose information about AP's activities and operations that the government has no conceivable right to know,” Pruitt said.
In a statement, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia said it was “always careful and deliberate” in deciding to target media organizations.
News of Justice seizing the records comes as the administration is already dealing with accusations the IRS abused its power by targeting conservative groups for tax audits.
The administration is also under attack for its handling of the Benghazi attack.
Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/299479-white-house-no-knowledge-of-ap-phone-record-seizure#ixzz2TDxZV3WK Follow us: @thehill on Twitter | TheHill on Facebook
I do not believe you mister president... you sir are a liar!
LLS
Yep and I’m not a fan of electing legislators as executives. We need a good governor for good governance. Legislators so rarely have what it takes. They’re deal makers/fixers and not leaders.
He also sanctimoniously condemned what the IRS did on his own orders.
He’s a lying scumbag.
He can be removed by legal means, but he’ll try to hold on to power using illegal means. Keep your powder dry. The DHS hasn’t been stockpiling bullets for no reason.
Buying some prepaid cell phones (and then maintaining them unused for now) would not be a bad idea either. PagePlus allows as little as $10 for the cards, and they last 4 months.
Thanks jazusamo.
Impeachment File on Benghazi Coward B. Hussein Obama, aka Barry Soetoro, a legal citizen of the sovereign Nation of Indonesia.
Indeed... no knowledge at all... about anything but butt piracy, baby murder, buggery, islamic demon-ism and communism... in those they have great knowledge.
LLS
He can’t stand 1/2 of Americans and acts like an agitator more than anything else.
time to throw Eric Holder under the bus!
I remember an article from a long time ago talking about state senator obama being likely as a presidential. Seems like it was 2003, maybe 2004. I don’t think there is/was any big conspiracy to get him in. I think it is/was a blatant in your face attack. There are too many people in this country too stupid to get that.
I was shocked when I had to go off my Verizon plan (happy as heck to leave Verizon) and bought a pre-paid cell with no contract (Virgin Mobile) at Radio Shack. The salesman told me I had to provide a Govt.-issued-ID, that there is an FCC law now enacted to allegedly thwart criminals by recording and storing a legitimate Govt. issued ID to buy a phone. Sales guy said whomever sells and whomever buys gets in big trouble if NO ID is presented. Wish they would be as dilligent for voting fraud, illegal immigrant fraud, etc.
At first glance, it looks like the Justice Dept was targeting reporters, but the main purpose was to find out who was talking to reporters.
Levin nailed it tonight. Team Kenya just got more and more brazen the more they got away with. Now it is going to bite them in the behind. It will be a long, hot summer in Mombasa on the Potomac.
I have no doubt. That 2004 speech at the DNC convention. Sometime after that he started getting his documents like his Selective Service registration squared away. (Those here on student-Visas didn’t have to register for Selective Service. hmmmm)
This matches up nicely with the fairy tale that the kenyan didn’t know about the IRS stuff until seeing it on the news friday. Nevermind his White House lawyer was told on April 22. Get your popcorn.
Especially since Eric Holder is REQUIRED to personally sign off on it!
Rules published by the Justice Department require that subpoenas of records of news organizations must be personally approved by the attorney general
Yep
Those idiots are hopeless.
No this was before that. A magazine article. I remember reading it at the parents place in 2003-4 and it really seems like it was a couple of years old then. They were talking about state senate candidate obama.
blah, no doubt a fawning “story” with the nativity narrative.
TREASON - continuous, PRE-MEDITATED, agenda-driven, in-your-face, media-complicit, AGENCY-ABETTED, representative-enabled, ongoing...
CRIMINALS overplaying their hand BUMP!
That’s interesting, because I’ve had to replace my phone at least twice, and never had to show ID at all.
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