House Intel leaders: Guardian report 'irresponsibly misleading'

[ProSense]

House Intel leaders: Guardian report 'irresponsibly misleading'

By Brendan Sasso

The leaders of the House Intelligence Committee blasted the latest leaks about the National Security Agency's surveillance programs on Wednesday.

“The latest in the parade of classified leaks published today is without context and provides a completely inaccurate picture of the program," Reps. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.) and Dutch Ruppersberger (D-Md.) said in a joint statement.

The Guardian reported on Wednesday that the NSA is running a surveillance program, named XKeyscore, that allows intelligence analysts to search databases of people's email, online chats and browsing histories without prior authorization.

Documents obtained by the newspaper from former government contractor Edward Snowden describe how analysts can obtain Internet data — including the content of email messages, Facebook chats, private messages and search histories — by filling out a simple on-screen form.

Rogers and Ruppersberger called the report "irresponsibly misleading."

- more -

http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/314853-house-intel-leaders-guardian-report-irresponsibly-misleading

[99th_Monkey]

1. Is this Rogers' and Ruppersberger's "least dishonest" assessment? ~nt

[usGovOwesUs3Trillion]

8. Irony is officially dead on the Hill

They must all be running around with their hair on fire.

:roflmfao:

[PDJane]

2. "Never believe anything until it's been officially denied."

In other words, it's not irresponsibly misleading, it's quite true. The quote, by the way, is from Claude Cockburn.

[Pholus]

26. Yup, this.

[disidoro01]

3. Do I have this right?

Mike Rogers good, ACLU bad?
Notice how ole Mike doesn't say it isn't true, just out of context. So did those constraints prevent a new hire from taking documents and accessing such secure information with layers of oversight?
Mike says it's a tool to better understand, not that it doesn't do what Snowden says it does. Why is that?

[hootinholler]

13. ROFLMAO

If there was such oversight, how did Snowden get the docs?

[cthulu2016]

4. Hiow would they know?

[dballance]

5. Want to bet on who is REALLY the "irresponsibly misleading"

set of people? I'm betting on the GOP house mis-leaders.

[randome]

6. Glenn's 15 minutes are nearly up.

How is he going to sell that book of his after the declassification of documents tomorrow? I guess we'll have to see how much is declassified and how much it refutes Glenn's nefarious implications.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Don't ever underestimate the long-term effects of a good night's sleep.[/center][/font][hr]

[cthulu2016]

7. Aren't you worried that selective declassification could be

"without context and provide a completely inaccurate picture of the program"?

[randome]

12. I'm only 'worried' about evidence and facts.

Both sides have an agenda. Greenwald and the NSA. Get as much evidence as we can and then make our tentative conclusions about it.

I say 'tentative' because all conclusions should be tentative with the possibility of future evidence changing the picture.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Don't ever underestimate the long-term effects of a good night's sleep.[/center][/font][hr]

[usGovOwesUs3Trillion]

23. Oh, Only totalitarian 'facts', huh?

hate to judge before all the facts are in, right?

[great white snark]

31. WTF do you find funny?

Nothing wrong with discerning the accuracy of facts before judgement. If not you look like an ignorant fool-kinda like when you throw around the term "totalitarian" when someone disagrees with you.

Try being equally objective to what the NSA says and what Greenwald says. If it's in you.

Although in your case it might be too late considering your "biggest story of the century" Greenwaldish comment.

[usGovOwesUs3Trillion]

32. The defenders of totalitarian policies

Because it does not matter how much evidence is presented they still wallow in their denial.

[Pholus]

27. 24 hours too late, rue many at the NSA.

Now that content collection is off the table, I want to start talking about how Bush laid the groundwork for the shaping of public opinion by telling us US Government propaganda on the US citizen was okay.

That seemed silly and out of touch at the time, but what they were actually thinking about was DARPA's SMISC program.

The sunlight, it is seeping in!

[Wilms]

9. I'm really relieved they stepped up to clear up this matter.

I feel much better hearing their reassurances.

[Warren Stupidity]

10. In other words, it is entirely accurate.

But of course these two could simply fill us in on all the missing context that would set the record straight. In a functional demoracy the people have to be able make informed decisions, in our dysfunctional democracy a national security state has emerged within the hollowed out framework of a constitutional republic, wrapped itself in secrecy justified by a 60 year perpetual state of emergency, protected its existence with pork barrel politics, and rendered "representative democracy" meaningless. These two could set the record straight, that is if they had the courage of a Bradley Manning or an Edward Snowden.

[Vinnie From Indy]

11. Also in the article...

But Jameel Jaffer, deputy legal director for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), said the latest report shows that the "government's surveillance activities are far more extensive and intrusive than previously understood, and they underscore that the surveillance laws are in desperate need of reform."

He said the documents also call into question the truth of statements that intelligence officials have made in recent months about the programs.

Cheers!

[Scurrilous]

14. Thanks.

K & R

[Waiting For Everyman]

15. I'm glad these two and DiFi are going on the record saying this.

That way they'll be good and caught in their lies before too long. Like Clapper.

This is like insisting the Titanic is just fine after it hit the iceberg.

[RC]

18. Well, the deck chairs are not wet yet, so everything is A-OK.

[NuclearDem]

16. So, basically, Congress to people: Trust us! Would your government lie to you?

[treestar]

36. This is how you are going to dismiss it?

Does the government "lie to you" all the time then?

Maybe no one on food stamps is qualified then? Only the 1% are getting them?

This is just deranged. We're supposed to generally hate and distrust the government, end of story?

[NuclearDem]

37. No. There's a big difference between the social safety net and the national security apparatus

Food stamps and Social Security never spread lies about WMDs or invaded people's private lives without a warrant.

[cprise]

17. 'It Meta. Meta! META!! META META META!!!!!!!'

Or... its the entire Where, When, Who and What of every minute of our lives, minus the dialogue.

[cherokeeprogressive]

19. Well color me surprised! That's exactly the opposite of what I EXPECTED them to say... NOT.

[steve2470]

20. It's all legal, who cares, nothing to see, move along citizen !

If Dick Cheney can personally go down to the CIA and pressure them for a "better report" on Iraq, I can easily foresee a scenario in the future where someone powerful goes to the NSA in person and digs up what they wish.

Before that report in 2003, I was naive enough to believe that a sitting Vice President would NEVER do something like that. Of course, it will never ever happen again in the history of this republic.

[Pholus]

28. VERY insightful,

and something that we will not have a spirited discussion about sadly.

See, we have the right guy in charge and that will never change so how dare we worry about limiting powers.

[steve2470]

38. agreed ! nt

[ucrdem]

21. The Guardian is awfully interested in the NSA.

I wonder why that might be . . .

[usGovOwesUs3Trillion]

24. because they are an international news organization reporting on the biggest story of the century

maybe

[muriel_volestrangler]

42. ucrdem thinks the Guardian is a front for the British intelligence services

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023034235#post101

and he also thinks they are trying to embarrass the Americans.

[freshwest]

25. Hahaha. Did Murdoch record them?

[Broward]

29. I wonder why the Guardian is only one of the few

publications actually practicing journalism.

[Zorra]

22. "the documents also call into question the truth of statements that intelligence officials have made

in recent months about the programs.

But Jameel Jaffer, deputy legal director for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), said the latest report shows that the "government's surveillance activities are far more extensive and intrusive than previously understood, and they underscore that the surveillance laws are in desperate need of reform."

He said the documents also call into question the truth of statements that intelligence officials have made in recent months about the programs.

Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/314853-house-intel-leaders-guardian-report-irresponsibly-misleading#ixzz2ah5VltVG
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[Agony]

30. You mean Rep Rogers who authored CISPA and whose wife was President and CEO of Aegis LLC?

"In November 30, 2011 Congressman Rogers introduced the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA).[9] "The bill would allow the government to share all of its classified cyber-security knowledge with private companies, forming knowledge-sharing agreements that would hopefully keep China (and other countries and hackers) out of American computer networks. The catch is that the information shared is a two-lane street—companies would also be allowed to share private data with the federal government, provided there is a reasonable "cyber threat.""[10]"

"His wife, Kristi Clemens Rogers, was previously President and CEO of Aegis LLC, a contractor to the United States Department of State for intelligence-based and physical security services."

Yeah, he'll be straight up with us...

I am just trying to help with catapulting the propaganda, how am I doing?


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Rogers_(Michigan_politician)

[bullwinkle428]

33. But what did Michele Bachmann have to say about it? (Being on the Intelligence

Committee and all.)

[unreadierLizard]

34. How did I know

that ProSense would make a thread like this?

Snowden got temporary asylum in Russia. the American Politburo needs to get to work on making him look like a traitor libertarian Ron Rand Ayn Rand something to make people not believe what he leaked.

[ProSense]

35. Was it

"How did I know that ProSense would make a thread like this?"

...because you saw the name attached to it? Because I'm not afraid of information...unlike some people: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023381665

"Snowden got temporary asylum in Russia. the American Politburo needs to get to work on making him look like a traitor libertarian Ron Rand Ayn Rand something to make people not believe what he leaked."

Cool, he finally found utopia.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

39. Politicians vs The Guardian. Who to believe....?

No contest.

[muriel_volestrangler]

40. Using the NSA definition of 'targeting'

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2013/07/nsa_lexicon_how_james_clapper_and_other_u_s_officials_mislead_the_american.html

You 'target' someone at the centre; and then you're allowed to go three 'hops' away from them.

[librechik]

41. the thing about this stuff is--Snowden can't touch it anymore.

he gave his stash to The Guardian, and now they release it in dribs and drabs. It's a typical public relations type strategy that the US is in agony over--even though they do it themselves. They don't like it when it's pulled on them. It's very effective.

And it's not like Snowden is "misleading them." He has no input on these releases anymore. Congress needs to deal with the facts as released, not their outrage over their own exposure.