White House denies intel chief will lead NSA surveillance

[kpete]

Source: The Hill

White House denies intel chief will lead NSA surveillance review
By Brendan Sasso - 08/13/13 03:08 PM ET

The Obama administration is denying that James Clapper, the director of national intelligence, will control a review of the government's surveillance programs.

Privacy advocates expressed dismay on Monday after President Obama directed Clapper to establish a group that will provide recommendations for reforming the controversial surveillance programs.

The review is part of the president's push to restore public trust in the programs, but the privacy activists argue that the group can't be independent if it is led by the administration's top intelligence official.


"Director Clapper will not be a part of the group, and is not leading or directing the group’s efforts," Caitlin Hayden, a White House spokeswoman, told The Hill on Tuesday.



Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/316879-white-house-denies-intel-chief-will-lead-nsa-review

[Katashi_itto]

1. Sure everythings fine, nothing to see, move along

[Enrique]

2. where did people get the idea that the DNI would be running it?

maybe from Obama's memo?

To this end, by the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, I am directing you to establish a Review Group on Intelligence and Communications Technologies(Review Group). The Review Group will assess whether, in light of advancements in communications technologies, the United States employs its technical collection capabilities in a manner that optimally protects our national security and advances our foreign policy while appropriately accounting for other policy considerations,such as the risk of unauthorized disclosure and our need to maintain the public trust. Within 60 days of its establishment,the Review Group will brief their interim findings to me through the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), and the Review Group will provide a final report and recommendations to me through the DNI no later than December 15, 2013. You are hereby authorized and directed to publish this memorandum in the Federal Register

[TxGrandpa]

9. Clapper will establish the group and..

..appoint some good ole boys from the intelligence community, who of course will be unbiased [wink, wink] in their findings. Of course they will be detached and an outside group of independent individuals.

Still looking to see where the privacy of Americans is mentioned. But of course they will maintain the public trust by not allowing us to see what data they are collecting on us.. 'Trust me said the spider to the fly'.

[zeemike]

3. Perhaps we will now hear a new definition of the word leading.

Or perhaps he is just appointing them...
But sorry I am so skeptical and cynical, but that is where I am now.

[BlueManFan]

4. In A Related Story The White Denied That Misogynistic Piece Of Shit Larry Summers is

being considered for the post of Chairman of the Fed. We'll see him at his swearing in.

[forestpath]

13. +1000

[RC]

5. Clapper won't be part of the group, just naming who will be in it.

I see, like John Roberts names the member of the secret court. No bias here, move along now.

He sent a memo to Clapper on Monday, directing him to establish the group. The memo said the group will brief the president on its findings and issue a report "through" the director of national intelligence.

[PSPS]

6. LOL. Clapper "won't control" the "review," he just picks everyone who does the "reviewing."

Kind of like the saying, "Who votes doesn't matter. Who counts the votes is all that Matters."

The trouble is that things have gotten to the point that nobody believes anything coming out of the white house these days. The best people can expect is "the least untruthful answer" to everything.

[pscot]

14. The group will submit the report to Clapper

(who is definitely not in charge) and he will interpret their findings to the President. But he's not in charge.

[deurbano]

7. What does this (in bold below) mean? (From The Hill article)

<<Shawn Turner, a spokesman for the director of national intelligence, also said that the group will "not be under the direction of or led by" Clapper.

"The members will have access to classified information so they need to be administratively attached to a government element but the review process and findings will be their own," Turner said.>>

[Luschnig]

8. There's something fish about the memo to Clapper

http://www.scribd.com/doc/159777269/Obama-establishes-surveillance-review-group

Have a look at it. Do you think it's authentic after seeing it?

[jakeXT]

10. pdf

http://www.emptywheel.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/2013inteltech.mem_.rel_.pdf

[Divernan]

11. Well, didn't take long to turn this whole "review process" into a national embarassment.

"The members will have access to classified information so they need to be administratively attached to a government element but the review process and findings will be their own," Turner said.

Among other actions, Obama said an "independent group" made up of a "high-level group of outside experts" would review the programs and prepare a report on its findings.

Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/316879-white-house-denies-intel-chief-will-lead-nsa-review#ixzz2btZt8GAJ
A comment in the Hill, following that article from the Hill observed:

I'm still trying to understand Ms. Hayden's point that all members will need to be government affiliated. That means only current officials with security clearances, appointed by DNI, reporting to DNI, which then passes on those recommendations to POTUS without actually being involved in any way.... Really? This isn't the most duplicitous administration ever; it's simply the most clumsily stupid one.

Obama's statement that the group would be made up of independent high-level outside experts is in flat out, indisputable opposition to spokesperson Hayden's statement that the group would be made up of "individuals attached to a government element". And of course,what the HELL is "a government element"?

This whole "review" is already at the Chinese fire drill, FUBAR stage. And of course, the whole process and final report is and will be closely followed and analyzed by governments around the globe. Kerry's in Brazil trying to reassure the govt. there that Obama will get on top of the spying, but news reports quoting Obama's memo show that Clapper, who lied to Congress, will control the report by choosing people with the right biases to give Clapper the outcome he wants. Maybe they won't hate the US as much when they're laughing so hard at Obama's attempts to contain this whole scandal. What SHOULD have been stated by Obama's representative is that anyone appointed to the review panel will have to agree to undergo security clearance at the appropriate level.

[DRoseDARs]

12. WH denies fox will guard henhouse, will only pick foxes who will.

11th-dimensional chess...

[blkmusclmachine]

15. Blind leading the blind.