Hoekstra: Failing to Inform Congress of Spying Projects Might Be Illegal

[CatWoman]

By: John Amato @ 2:12 PM - PDT

In a wild development, Peter Hoekstra, the Republican chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, has come out big time against Bush and his secret programs:

In a sharply worded letter to President Bush in May, an important Congressional ally charged that the administration might have violated the law by failing to inform Congress of some secret intelligence programs and risked losing Republican support on national security matters.–

"I have learned of some alleged intelligence community activities about which our committee has not been briefed," Mr. Hoesktra wrote. "If these allegations are true, they may represent a breach of responsibility by the administration, a violation of the law, and, just as importantly, a direct affront to me and the members of this committee who have so ardently supported efforts to collect information on our enemies." He added: "The U.S. Congress simply should not have to play Twenty Questions to get the information that it deserves under our Constitution."

Developing…

http://www.crooksandliars.com/posts/2006/07/08/hoekstra-failing-to-inform-congress-of-spying-projects-might-be-illegal/

[demosincebirth]

1. Sound like he might be in tight reelection campaign.

[kentuck]

2. that weasel !

"might" be illegal? There's so much shit they are not telling him. Because he is a weasel.

[demosincebirth]

4. .Self Delete

[Jackpine Radical]

3. Thanks, CW. I'm speculating...

In the absence of details on the nature of what Hoekstra found out, I see two major possibilities.

First, and least likely, is that Hoekstra found out the Bushies have been doing something something so egregious that even he, the apologist extraordinaire, can't stomach it.

Second, and more likely, he found out the Bushies have been doing something truly awful that he fears is about to get publicly exposed somehow, and he is maneuvering to distance himself from the impending shit hemmorhage.

[kentuck]

5. He probably wasn't informed of the banking records spying...

which Feinstein says she was told nothing about it and no one on the Intellgience Committee was told about it, she said.

[CatWoman]

6. as Augie said above

the rat bastard is probably worried about his reelection.

[Jackpine Radical]

9. Well, I'm sure he's worried about the election, but

this seems to be too big a deal for the SWIFT business, which they already have pretty well papered over. Somehow I think there was something new and really dirty that triggered this thing. Why gratuitously raise the suspicion that there's some additional, really bad thing out there if there isn't?

[Monkeyman]

7. New York Times has his letter in fdf form

[CatWoman]

8. can you post the link, please?