Feinstein Statement on NSA Compliance

[uhnope]

Source: press release

“By law, the Intelligence Committee receives roughly a dozen reports every year on FISA activities, which include information about compliance issues. Some of these reports provide independent analysis by the offices of the inspectors general in the intelligence community. The committee does not receive the same number of official reports on other NSA surveillance activities directed abroad that are conducted pursuant to legal authorities outside of FISA (specifically Executive Order 12333), but I intend to add to the committee’s focus on those activities.

“The committee has been notified—and has held briefings and hearings—in cases where there have been significant FISA compliance issues. In all such cases, the incidents have been addressed by ending or adapting the activity.

“The large majority of NSA’s so-called ‘compliance incidents’ are called ‘roaming’ incidents, in which the NSA is collecting the phone or electronic communications of a non-American outside the United States, and that person then enters the United States. The NSA generally won’t know that the person has traveled to the United States. As the laws and rules governing NSA surveillance require different procedures once someone enters the U.S.—generally to require a specific FISA court order—NSA will cite this as a ‘compliance incident,’ and either cease the surveillance or obtain the required FISA court order. The majority of these ‘compliance incidents’ are, therefore, unintentional and do not involve any inappropriate surveillance of Americans.

“As I have said previously, the committee has never identified an instance in which the NSA has intentionally abused its authority to conduct surveillance for inappropriate purposes.

“I believe, however, that the committee can and should do more to independently verify that NSA’s operations are appropriate, and its reports of compliance incidents are accurate. This should include more routine trips to NSA by committee staff and committee hearings at which all compliance issues can be fully discussed.”

Read more: http://www.feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=9e2e8297-2968-40c9-8001-321e7a9a5079

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Just got to say, none of this looks like an agency that is scarily out of control. Our country has serious issues with loss of freedom and police abuse going on elsewhere, and personally I just wish the well-meaning progressives getting on this NSA hysteria bandwagon (being pulled by the right wing talk shows and FOX) would focus more on those (militarization of local police, tens of thousands in jail for pot, children taken from parents for pot use, USA #1 in prison population, genital checks on the roadside by police, stop and frisk, lack of decent legal representation for poor people, cost of education, privatization of schools, need I go on?)

[Rosa Luxemburg]

1. Justice Roberts decides what happens

[mike_c]

2. no reason we can't work on ALL of those liberal objectives AND dismantle the surveillance state....

eom

[uhnope]

4. all? nt

[mike_c]

6. sure, why not?

Being a committed liberal doesn't mean having to pick one issue that matters, or two, or whatever. I suspect we disagree about the relative importance of expansion of the American surveillance state, but even so-- your OP proposed a list of other issues that liberals should be concerned about. My point is that working on those issues does not preclude addressing pervasive surveillance too.

[uhnope]

7. I respect that but

this NSA is both totally overblown and feeds the right wing entertainment complex, which undercuts the progressive action on those huge issues that are not getting this attention

[pnwmom]

10. And the next time when we have a bigger 9/11, after we have "dismantled the security state"

and then lost thousands of more lives, what do you think will happen?

We'll end up with a security state far beyond what we have now.

[mike_c]

11. concern noted....

eom

[NoOneMan]

3. Please spy on me. I love being spied on.

Down with the Ron Paul left. Welcome to a new age of being watched!

[PSPS]

5. Feinstein apparently doesn't mind the phrase, "the least untruthful answer."

This is a boilerplate politician news release, with the usual passive voice.

"I intend to..."
"generally won’t know..."
"generally to require..."
"The majority of..."
"do not involve any inappropriate..."
"has never identified..."
"should do more..."
"should include..."

In other words, empty platitudes.

[malthaussen]

13. You left out the repeated use of "appropriate."

Now, what exactly does "appropriate" mean? I rather think that the Committee's definition and mine would differ substantially.

-- Mal

[lunatica]

19. Bulls eye!

You get it. That's Feintstein!

I despise that women. She's my Senator.

[catchnrelease]

20. Agree x 1 million! n/t

[UpInArms]

8. not surprising considering the source

both the post and the poster

[pnwmom]

9. But this is so much less exciting than the story Greenwald's been pushing.

You're taking away all our fun.

[blkmusclmachine]

12. We wouldn't lie to you,

again.

[TriplD]

14. It's not the "incidents" that involve 1 person I'm most worried about

it's the ones that involve millions of records.

It doesn't matter if "the large majority of NSA’s so-called ‘compliance incidents’ are called ‘roaming’ incidents" when a single incident can involve perhaps millions of records.

She's either stupid or thinks we are. I suspect the later.

[Douglas Carpenter]

15. with cranks and nuts like Jimmy Carter, Al Gore, John Conyers, Gary Hart and the moonbats at Amnesty

International, the American Civil Liberties Union and Human Rights Watch as well as freaks like Valerie Plame Wilson and Joe Wilson all working up this hysteria because of their blind hatred of Barack Obama - it is no wonder the lunatic fringe is also all worked up about this ridiculous and preposterous trivial matter of the government closely monitoring all our communications when it is only being done for our own good.

Just listen to this nutcase:


"It is not excessive to believe this growing, gargantuan, secret complex now represents the greatest threat to our freedom in the new twenty-first century." - former U.S. Senator Gary Hart


or just get a loud of these two goof balls:

The NSA's metastasised intelligence-industrial complex is ripe for abuse

Where oversight and accountability have failed, Snowden's leaks have opened up a vital public debate on our rights and privacy

by Valerie Plame Wilson and Joe Wilson

guardian.co.uk, Sunday 23 June 2013 13.00 BST


Let's be absolutely clear about the news that the NSA collects massive amounts of information on US citizens – from emails, to telephone calls, to videos, under the Prism program and other Fisa court orders: this story has nothing to do with Edward Snowden. As interesting as his flight to Hong Kong might be, the pole-dancing girlfriend, and interviews from undisclosed locations, his fate is just a sideshow to the essential issues of national security versus constitutional guarantees of privacy, which his disclosures have surfaced in sharp relief.

Snowden will be hunted relentlessly and, when finally found, with glee, brought back to the US in handcuffs and severely punished. (If Private Bradley Manning's obscene conditions while incarcerated are any indication, it won't be pleasant for Snowden either, even while awaiting trial.) Snowden has already been the object of scorn and derision from the Washington establishment and mainstream media, but, once again, the focus is misplaced on the transiently shiny object. The relevant issue should be: what exactly is the US government doing in the people's name to "keep us safe" from terrorists?

We are now dealing with a vast intelligence-industrial complex that is largely unaccountable to its citizens. This alarming, unchecked growth of the intelligence sector and the increasingly heavy reliance on subcontractors to carry out core intelligence tasks – now estimated to account for approximately 60% of the intelligence budget – have intensified since the 9/11 attacks and what was, arguably, our regrettable over-reaction to them.

Today, the intelligence sector is so immense that no one person can manage, or even comprehend, its reach. When an operation in the field goes south, who would we prefer to try and correct the damage: a government employee whose loyalty belongs to his country (despite a modest salary), or the subcontractor who wants to ensure that his much fatter paycheck keeps coming? - Valerie Plame Wilson and Joe Wilson

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jun/23/nsa-intelligence-industrial-complex-abuse

[HardTimes99]

16. That old war pig\profiteer voted for the War in Iraq. She has zero credibility left on any

issue of substance. As soon as I see her name, I tune out.

[closeupready]

18. +100.

[catchnrelease]

21. 'She has zero credibility left on any issue of substance. As soon as I see her name, I tune out'

+100 here too

[burnodo]

17. "militarization of local police, tens of thousands in jail for pot..."

children taken from parents for pot use, USA #1 in prison population, genital checks on the roadside by police, stop and frisk, lack of decent legal representation for poor people, cost of education, privatization of schools,

Shouldn't Democrats be talking about and tackling these issues? Why are the "hysterical left" responsible for prioritizing these issues? And, by the by, can't they be concerned about all those other issues AND be concerned about the government illegally spying on its citizens?

[polynomial]

22. We The people should be part of that independent study

That roaming stuff very well could be what many consider unintentional “noise”. But, highly and likely what that particular metadata analysis is, its intentional, a noise, or data packets delivered into the system to tie up the program.

Al Qaeda Islam have a very learned team of social military minds, this Islamic social instinct goes back more than a millennium of time. Actually anyone can do some research to find a panorama to visualize the imagination in real history that shows the Golden age of Islam, heck even current Hollywood DVD’s expose the terror and treachery the Quran approach offers civilization. True John Wayne does not tell the whole story of the indigenous American Indian, but does contrast into colorful debate.

From my view and my point, these Snowden releases do set off alarms about our intelligence system. You have to dig deep into this political pyramid scheme. Ancient Islam was investigating metadata analysis way before America was ever discovered. Islam was into social science behavior for thousands of years, with that experience now to apply modern technology is scary to me. Please metadata applied to social medicine is one of the scariest of them all. Then many wonder why the Pharmaceutical industry knowing, and might have unauthorized access to this metadata existence, might very well corrupt it or everyone around it. The post-social military side step to fool the Senate.

Here, many can see Feinstein is trying to work within the system, but when surrounded by the corruption can be easily deceive. From my view the fire wall of deception can get “terribly 007” at the same time. We the People must be on guard.