Tuesday, December 20, 2005

Democrats Say They Never OK'd Wiretapping - Yahoo! News
Need answers to who, when, and what. Who knew. When were they told. How much did they know, and were they lied to about the scope of the program. And the big who- exactly who were they spying on? And why did it need such secrecy?

Let the rumblings of impeachment begin.


WASHINGTON - Some Democrats say they never approved a domestic wiretapping program, undermining suggestions by President Bush and his senior advisers that the plan was fully vetted in a series of congressional briefings.

"I feel unable to fully evaluate, much less endorse, these activities," West Virginia Sen. Jay Rockefeller, the Senate Intelligence Committee's top Democrat, said in a handwritten letter (pdf) to Vice President Dick Cheney in July 2003. "As you know, I am neither a technician nor an attorney."

What's interesting about this handwritten letter is that Jay felt it necessary to include this at the end.
"I am retaining a copy of this letter in a sealed envelope in the secure spaces of the Senate Intelligence Committee to ensure that I have a record of this communication."

Was this a CYA (cover your ass) moment, or was he that afraid of what was going on that he felt the need to remind Cheney that there would be a record of this? (I'm leaning toward CYA).

On to the others- starting with Bob Graham.

Former Sen. Bob Graham, D-Fla., who was part of the Intelligence Committee's leadership after the 9/11 attacks, recalled a briefing about changes in international electronic surveillance, but does not remember being told of a program snooping on individuals in the United States.

"It seemed fairly mechanical," Graham said. "It was not a major shift in policy."

So Bob didn't know the scope or the details. Next, our girl Nancy.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., received several briefings and raised concerns, including in a classified letter, her spokeswoman Jennifer Crider said.

Nancy has been the most cagey in her statements, and she seems to be the only one who has known since the beginning. I'm getting the impression she knew everything. Tom?
Former Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle said he, too, was briefed by the White House between 2002 and 2004 but was not told key details about the scope of the program.

Put another down for "not told the scope" of the program. Harry?
Daschle's successor, Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he received a single briefing earlier this year and that important details were withheld. "We need to investigate this program and the president's legal authority to carry it out," Reid said.

Another story has Harry finding out only a couple of months ago, and he wasn't told the details.

Which Republicans knew? And how much did they know? Congressional oversight seems to be an important part of the President's defense on this- let's get the facts out.

Already Bush is implying that investigations would somehow help the enemy. This is the scariest thing of all to me.

Bush said the electronic eavesdropping program lets the government move faster than the standard practice of seeking a court-authorized warrant under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. "We've got to be fast on our feet, quick to detect and prevent," the president said.

And he was cool toward investigations. "An open debate would say to the enemy, `Here is what we're going to do.' And this is an enemy which adjusts," he said.

Which tells me he is going to use the "War on Terra" as an excuse to thwart investigations into his own criminal acts. Let's hope that bullshit won't fly anymore.