May 15, 2006 2:33 PM PDT
GOP skepticism over NSA program widens
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Speaking at a privacy seminar here at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Sen. John Sununu of New Hampshire said the latest revelations that the nation's three biggest phone companies have delivered call records on potentially millions of Americans to the NSA raise concerns about the government's encroachment into private citizens' lives, even if the actions were legal.
"The important question is whether or not this is activity that we think will yield a good result and whether we think it's activity in which the federal government should be engaged," Sununu said.
Voicing similar concerns about the FBI data-mining system once known as Carnivore, Sununu deemed the value of such databases "certainly untested" and said they were potentially ripe for "misuse."
"That's the history of the federal government, is that once you create a tool, create a database, create a program, oftentimes it then begins to seek out new uses, new opportunities, new activities that weren't part of its original charter," he said.
When speaking about the NSA program, Sununu chose his words carefully, saying he didn't doubt the accuracy of the Bush administration's descriptions of the closely guarded program and even going so far as to say he believed the appropriate congressional leadership had been adequately briefed on the matter.
In that sense he seemed to take a more moderate stance than his colleague, Sen. Arlen Specter, who has been perhaps the most vocal Republican to question the Bush administration's actions. Public criticism of the program has been limited largely to Democrats.
Asked whether he expected Congress to take action against AT&T, BellSouth and Verizon Communications for reportedly turning over records to the feds, Sununu said he didn't think the companies themselves deserved the blame. (Specter, meanwhile, has vowed to call in the company executives for questioning.)
"Again, that's not because I think that the program is one that should receive support without question," Sununu said, "but because I understand that the federal government has a great deal of power, is viewed as being responsible in this area, and for a person in a position of responsibility to comply with that is understandable."
Sununu said he saw no reason to believe that the information had even been obtained illegally by the government, noting that they could have "easily" used National Security Letters under the Patriot Act to obtain phone records. The controversial NSLs compel communication service providers to provide records about individuals but do not require the use of a court warrant.
The real question, Sununu said, is, "Do you want (the government) to be creating these large, broad databases? Do you see a very specific value to doing so? That's where I begin to get queasy."
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If it was so easy, why not do it and avoid the negative ramifications of not doing so (especially after the Quest lawyers considered the request illegal)?
mark d.
the Cancer. Get Cheney First! Fitzgerald will take him down over
the Plame affair. That leaves the president, who should be
impeached for each of his illegal power grabs. Where are the
patriots when you need them?
Bush has a list of lies to Congress as long as his pseudo homeland's Great Wall of China.
Look, everyone knows terrorists don't use landlines, they use pre-paid cellphones, they're untrackable, untraceable and unwiretappable.
So all this crap about needing this or that for national security is just another of Comrade Bush's lies to the American people.
My suggestion is rather than investigate the NSA thing (they'll just kill it by denying clearance to the relevant paperwork anyway, like they did with the Justice Department's wire tap investigation), why not find out how a team of ex-Soviets in collusion with Red China have managed to replace our entire Administration and the nation's Attorny General with communist clones..
Oh well, I suppose the alternative would be to let Bush know this was not what we meant when we asked for more intelligence in the White House..
OMG, do you realize what this means!?!? In my mind it means
that our constitution is being used as toilet paper by the traitors
in D.C. The bottom line is the Traitor Act (Patriot) is
unconstitutional. The 4th amendment (along with others like
the 1st and 2nd) are and have been under attack! Why can't
others see this outrage. Not many people seem to care? Heck,
most people have not even "analyzed" the events of 911 to see
what really happend! I'm seriously considering leaving the US
out of FEAR! Seriously what is next, tanks in the streets?
Sorry for the rant, but this is getting crazy! IMPEACH BUSH
NOW!
And vote LP www.lp.org
scuttle the Federal government's domestic spying programs. Is
America sufficiently outraged to take action?
"The state must declare the child to be the most precious treasure of the people. As long as the government is perceived as working for the benefit of the children, the people will happily endure almost any curtailment of liberty and almost any deprivation."
- Adolf Hitler
i'm sick of you cowards letting the Bushies scare you into complying with his Twerror alert BLue-Greens and theats that an attack might happen today, maybe, kinda...
have some respect for yourself. whats worse: the chance that another 3000 out of 26million people might die or living in a world akin to a bad sci-fi movie.?
the sickening part is that Bush is a moron. no one with his limited intelligence should have the final say on what happens in this country. its scary that he's the only person between Cheney and world domination. maybe after we've lost enough troops, and arrested enough innocent people and TORTURED them, you silly bastards will step up.
i've been to Iraq - their phones arent taped.