John Roberts Packed ‘Independent’ FISA Court With Republicans, Former Federal Employees

[mitty14u2]

President Obama defended the government surveillance programs exposed by Edward Snowden, telling Charlie Rose, "It is transparent. That's why we set up the FISA court." He added that in addition to Congress, "you've got a federal court with independent federal judges overseeing the entire program."

That's true, but he failed to mention that the judges approve nearly every government request, their decisions are classified, and they're all appointed by the Supreme Court's chief justice.

For the first time, the New York Times has published a list of every judge to serve on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court since it was created in 1978. Their analysis reveals that compared to his predecessors, Chief Justice John Roberts's picks are far more likely to be Republicans, and to have worked in the executive branch.

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2013/07/roberts-packed-fisa-court-with-republicans.html

Chief justice of the U.S. is a pretty big job. You lead the Supreme Court conferences where cases are discussed and voted on. You preside over oral arguments. When in the majority, you decide who writes the opinion. You get a cool robe that you can decorate with gold stripes.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-02/chief-justice-roberts-is-awesome-power-behind-fisa-court.html

[blkmusclmachine]

1. Of course he did.