Posted on 01/30/2006 6:24:40 AM PST by wagglebee
Bush administration critics continue to insist that the president could have gotten all the wiretap authority he needed from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to intercept terrorist communications as they plotted the next 9/11 attack.
But it turns out, the 9/11 Commission strongly disagreed.
As noted on yesterday's "Meet the Press" by National Review Online reporter Byron York, 9/11 Commission Report clearly states:
"The FISA application process continues to be long and slow. Requests for approvals are overwhelming the ability of the system to process them and to conduct a surveillance.”
In a passage not noted by Mr. York, the Commission blasts the FISA process even more harshly, complaining:
"The 'wall' between criminal and intelligence investigations apparently caused agents to be less aggressive than they might otherwise have been in pursuing Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) surveillance powers in counterterrorism investigations.
"Moreover, the FISA approval process involved multiple levels of review, which also discouraged agents from using such surveillance. Many agents also told us that the process for getting FISA packages approved at FBI Headquarters and the Department of Justice was incredibly lengthy and inefficient.
"Several FBI agents added that, prior to 9/11, FISA-derived intelligence information was not fully exploited but was collected primarily to justify continuing the surveillance."
Since the media generally regards the 9/11 Commission as the ultimate authority on such matters, we trust reporters will now stop insisting that the FISA process was wholly adequate to keep America safe from terrorists.
Perfect!
Any day now the 911 commission will reverse itself. They got something right and must not stand!
Excellent job by Mr York!
I recall the vaulted commission wanting to speak with GW. GW sais they could have ALL the time they needed to question him, but in private, no cameras. Lee Hamilton immediately said he had to meet the Canadian Ambassador, and Joey Biden left after 45 minutes.Nothing like blowing off the president for an ambassador, hmm?
Ultimate authority? MY ARSE!
I don't care about the speed of the FISA court. They could approve in one hour and it wouldn't make a difference.
The actual command and control oversight, the minute by minute security of the U.S., is entrusted constitutionally to the Commander in Chief, the President of the U.S.
Those who have not been in the military do not understand the requirement to act immediately to protect oneself.
Imagine a boxing match. One boxer in the ring is circling his opponent, ready at any moment to strike a blow.
The other boxer has his fists up, he understands the instantaneous response he needs to defend, but he is hampered.
When he thinks his opponent is ready to strike, he is required to turn his head toward his corner and ask his trainer for permission to strike back or defend.
The trainer justifies it by saying: "Oh but I can answer him right away."
His opponent just smiles. He has no rules preventing him from striking when the opportunity presents itself.
What was the reaction of the other so called objective keepers of the truth when Mr. York noted this?
Also, a Justice Department report said that more wiretaps were rejected or modified during the Bush administration than all the previous 4 administrations combined.
Had the Klintoon administration been paying attention to terrorism rather than viewing the White House as a whorehouse and presidential powers as a method to enrich yourself and destroy your enemies, Bush may not have been in the position to need to employ wiretaps.
You forgot the "/sarc" tag to prevent late-risers from being completely fooled...
First of all, it was a direct quote from NewsMax's article. Secondly, the media DOES seem to regard the 9/11 commission as teh "ultimate authority" and that being said, maybe this WILL make the media shut up about it. Of course they won't though.
Gorelick and Ben-Veniste are deeply saddened.
bush admion has used FISA thousands of times. It also devised terrorist surveillance to fit situations that FISA doesn't cover. Who would expect a 30 year old law to cover new technology, anyway. Whose responsibility would it be to keep it up-to-date? Congress?
I'm waiting for the answer as to how two former Clinton lawyers made it on to this panel of "extinguished public servants".
Except when the Dems are complaining about him NOT implementing them fast enough.
And some of the people actually believe it.
Your post #7 needs to be BTTT
Well said, xzins!
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