Whistle Blower Confirms Suspicions re: Bush's Wiretaps!

[ADK_Forever]

ACLU Sues Over Unconstitutional Dragnet Wiretapping Law
(7/10/2008)

Group Also Asks Secret Intelligence Court Not To Exclude Public From Any Proceedings On New Law's Constitutionality

NEW YORK - The American Civil Liberties Union filed a landmark lawsuit today to stop the government from conducting surveillance under a new wiretapping law that gives the Bush administration virtually unchecked power to intercept Americans' international e-mails and telephone calls.

The FISA Amendments Act of 2008, passed by Congress on Wednesday and signed by President Bush today, not only legalizes the secret warrantless surveillance program the president approved in late 2001, it gives the government new spying powers, including the power to conduct dragnet surveillance of Americans' international communications.

"Spying on Americans without warrants or judicial approval is an abuse of government power - and that's exactly what this law allows. The ACLU will not sit by and let this evisceration of the Fourth Amendment go unchallenged," said ACLU Executive Director Anthony D. Romero. "Electronic surveillance must be conducted in a constitutional manner that affords the greatest possible protection for individual privacy and free speech rights. The new wiretapping law fails to provide fundamental safeguards that the Constitution unambiguously requires."

In today's legal challenge, the ACLU argues that the new spying law violates Americans' rights to free speech and privacy under the First and Fourth Amendments to the Constitution. The new law permits the government to conduct intrusive surveillance without ever telling a court who it intends to spy on, what phone lines and email addresses it intends to monitor, where its surveillance targets are located, why it's conducting the surveillance or whether it suspects any party to the communication of wrongdoing.

American Civil Liberties Union : ACLU Sues Over Unconstitutional Dragnet Wiretapping Law

This is still on the court's docket and looks pretty solid. It is back in the news today after word that the Bush admin wiretapped journalists' phones.

Russell Tice Confirms Everything We’ve Surmised About Bush’s Illegal Wiretap Program

First, Tice's description of the program confirms everything we have surmised about the program. The program:

* Established the means to collect all American communications
* Analyzed meta-data to select a smaller subset of communications to tap further
* Conducted human analysis of those messages

That is, the Bush administration used meta-data (things like length of phone call that have nothing to do with terrorism) to pick which communications to actually open and read, and then they opened and read them.

And of course, everyone's communications--everyone's--were included in the totality of communications that might be tapped.

Including--especially--journalists. We knew that both Christiane Amanpour and Lawrence Wright's communications were tapped. Well, apparently so were every other journalists'.

Tice figured out that they were getting journalists' communications when he realized that they were separating out all the journalists' communications--but then ensuring that those communications were still collected 24/7.

I'm beginning to believe we might just hold these ****ers accountable yet.

Transcript, via Politico:

OLBERMANN: I mention that you say specific groups were targeted. What group or groups can you tell us about?


TICE: Well, there's sort of two avenues to look at this. What I just mentioned was sort of the low-tech dragnet look at this. The things that I specifically were involved with were more on the high-tech side. And try to envision, you know, the dragnets are out there, collecting all the fish and then ferreting out what they may. And my technical angle was to try to harpoon fish from an airplane kind of thing. So it's two separate worlds. But in the world that I was in, as to not harpoon the wrong people in some -- in one of the operations that I was in, we looked at organizations just supposedly so that we would not target them. So that we knew where they were, so as not to have a problem with them. Now, what I was finding out, though, is that the collection on those organizations was 24/7, and you know, 365 days a year, and it made no sense. And that's -- I started to investigate that. That's about the time when they came after me, to fire me. But an organization that was collected on were U.S. news organizations and reporters and journalists.

OLBERMANN: To what purpose? I mean, is there a file somewhere full of every e-mail sent by all the reporters at the "New York Times?" Is there a recording somewhere of every conversation I had with my little nephew in upstate New York? Is it like that?

TICE: If it was involved in this specific avenue of collection, it would be everything. Yes. It would be everything.

Emptywheel » Russell Tice Confirms Everything We’ve Surmised About Bush’s Illegal Wiretap Program

So, how could Bush and/or his brain Cheney explain that? Are alllll those journalists suspected terrorists? :roll:

...tick...tock...tick...tock...

It's just a matter of time...

 

[Renae]

There is a forum for this stuff, it's called "Conspiracy Theories" Mods can we get a move here?

 

[ADK_Forever]

There is a forum for this stuff, it's called "Conspiracy Theories" Mods can we get a move here?

Why does the truth terrify you so much?

 

[Thorgasm]

There is a forum for this stuff, it's called "Conspiracy Theories" Mods can we get a move here?

YouTube - Countdown - Russell Tice, former NSA analyst, discloses NSA surveillance procedures

 

[Captain America]

I'm just shocked! :shock:

I would have never believed this in a million years! :roll:

Not...................................

Maybe it really doesn't freak me out because I am of the opinion that Big Brother has been wire-tapping, snooping, and playing Spy vs. Spy long before Bush ever took office.

There is a fine line between politics and crime.

 

[Renae]

Why does the truth terrify you so much?

I'm not terrified. I'm amused. 8 years, no terror attacks, and people like you want to punish those that kept us safe.

I wonder, will you say it was Bush's fault when the next attack hits? Probably.

 

[Kandahar]

There is a forum for this stuff, it's called "Conspiracy Theories" Mods can we get a move here?

Although the whistleblower's claims need to be substantiated, this is hardly so implausible that it automatically lands in the Lunatic Forum.

 

[Thorgasm]

I'm not terrified. I'm amused. 8 years, no terror attacks, and people like you want to punish those that kept us safe.

I wonder, will you say it was Bush's fault when the next attack hits? Probably.

It didn't stop people from blaming Clinton.

 

[ADK_Forever]

I'm not terrified. I'm amused. 8 years, no terror attacks, and people like you want to punish those that kept us safe.

I wonder, will you say it was Bush's fault when the next attack hits? Probably.

8 years, no terror attacks

If you check a calendar you'll find that 9/11 was almost 8 months into his failed Presidency. Duhhhhhh!!!!!! :lol:

I think 9/11 was quite enough. He didn't keep us safe. He ignited the training of terrorists as well as leaving the door to attacking our country wide open. I am amazed how even die hard Repubs can still defend him. :doh

Bush's intellectually laziness should be a crime. His entire admin totally ignored the terrorist threat... until 9/11. They had plenty of warnings. His ignorance of the AQ threat should have gotten him impeached. I'll settle for a conviction.

No terror attacks? Do you read the world news? :roll: Oh that's right, facts like that wouldn't be on melon head's website. :mrgreen:

 

[Renae]

It didn't stop people from blaming Clinton.

It WAS Clinton's failures. Bush acted, no attacks. Obama is reversing much of what Bush set up. So naturally we had Clinton, who did little, and we had multiple hits on US Interests, Bush was in office 9 months and we had 9/11, and then... nothing.

So you can either blame Bush and be a fool, or accept that Obama's plans might have showed what they were waiting for weakness. Personally I expect AQ and Co to try something, and it will the actions of PBO that will tell the tale.

How will he react? And if there are more attacks well, then he's to blame.

 

[celticlord]

I'm not terrified. I'm amused. 8 years, no terror attacks, and people like you want to punish those that kept us safe.

I wonder, will you say it was Bush's fault when the next attack hits? Probably.

If there is a terrorist attack on American soil within the next 12 months, then most likely the intelligence failures, et cetera, that gave the terrorists the opportunity to strike would be the failure of the Bush Administration.

One should not lose sight of the fact that the 9/11 terrorists were in-country well before Bush took office--9/11 was a plot conceived, hatched, and set in motion during the Clinton administration.

If, after next January, a terrorist attack occurs on US soil, then blaming Bush becomes a much more fatuous exercise. By then, this Administration will have had ample time to address and rectify the putative security deficiencies left by the Bush Administration. Similarly, this Administration will have had ample time to create its own security deficiencies and create its own vulnerabilities.

 

[Renae]

If there is a terrorist attack on American soil within the next 12 months, then most likely the intelligence failures, et cetera, that gave the terrorists the opportunity to strike would be the failure of the Bush Administration.

One should not lose sight of the fact that the 9/11 terrorists were in-country well before Bush took office--9/11 was a plot conceived, hatched, and set in motion during the Clinton administration.

If, after next January, a terrorist attack occurs on US soil, then blaming Bush becomes a much more fatuous exercise. By then, this Administration will have had ample time to address and rectify the putative security deficiencies left by the Bush Administration. Similarly, this Administration will have had ample time to create its own security deficiencies and create its own vulnerabilities.

To a point I agree with you. Obama gets, and this is CRASS to say so, one attack in the first year that unless it's a glaringly obvious result of some change he made, where it would be hard to blame him for. After his policies are in place though, and the system is "Obamatized" he gets no pass.

 

[Lerxst]

This isn't conspiracy theory material at all. It's not only plausible, it's most likely very true. The government has the means and the motives to do it and it falls right in line with the many other things we shouldn't be doing but are.

And Clinton's failures were not the cause of 9/11. There are plenty of objective books out there that will provide you with the details of how something like this happens. It was the bureaucratic power struggle within the federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies. There were not just intelligence sharing breakdowns, there were walls built that thwarted our efforts here.

 

[ADK_Forever]

It WAS Clinton's failures. Bush acted

"Bush acted"? Ok, what did dubya do to prevent 9/11?

Obama is reversing much of what Bush set up.

Yes, sanity has arrived at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

Bush was in office 9 months and we had 9/11, and then... nothing.

You gloss over 9/11 happening as if you were speaking of someone walking across the street. :roll: Bush was in charge when our country was attacked, when Osama Bin Laden murdered over 3,000 innocent civilians, mostly Americans. It happened, on his watch, because he did NOTHING to prevent it. And, he did nothing to "go after those folks who did this", as he swore he would do.

Don't agree with me? Tell me then, what steps did George W. Bush do, during his first 7 months and 2 weeks as our country's President, to prevent a terrorist attack on our country? After all, he had plenty of warnings that this was coming.

While you're at it, why don't you tell us why, only 6 short months after that horrendous attack on our country, our President, George W. Bush, in answering why he hasn't mentioned Osama Bin Laden in awhile said, "I really don't think about him much"?!?!?! WHAAAT?!?!?! Only 6 months after all those people were killed and all those families were ripped apart he has put "those folks" out of his mind?

Please tell us so we may understand why this coward, who took all kinds of credit "after" 9/11, was not even concerned with the man, and organization, who was responsible for the biggest attack on our country since Pearl Harbor?

Please tell us. Maybe the answers are on melon head's web site. Go look. I'll wait. :2wave:

 

[celticlord]

And Clinton's failures were not the cause of 9/11.

The "cause" of 9/11 was the Islamic fundamentalist terrorist madness of Osama bin Laden and the rest of that band of murderous thugs called al-Qaeda. There is no doubt about that.

There also is no doubt that decisions made and policies implemented during the Clinton Administration exacerbated this nation's vulnerability to such an attack. Osama bin Laden was already on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list before 9/11, and al-Qaeda was known to US intelligence agencies. Yet despite this, during Clinton's term of office, al-Qaeda operatives entered the US, obtained flight training from US schools, and completed all but final target selection.

The best opportunities to stop the 9/11 plot in its tracks was in 1999 and 2000, when the hijackers were receiving flight training at American flight schools. Those opportunities were not acted upon during the Clinton Administration.

 

[ADK_Forever]

The best opportunities to stop the 9/11 plot in its tracks was in 1999 and 2000, when the hijackers were receiving flight training at American flight schools. Those opportunities were not acted upon during the Clinton Administration.

So, you're saying that the "best" time to stop the 9/11 attack occurred almost 2 years prior? You must be joking. :roll:

I repeat... Don't agree with me? Tell me then, what steps did George W. Bush do, during his first 7 months and 2 weeks as our country's President, to prevent a terrorist attack on our country? After all, he had plenty of warnings that this was coming.