Greenwald: 4 points about the 1971 FBI break-in

[JDPriestly]

48. COINTELPRO

was illegal because it violated our constitutional rights.

The NSA surveillance does the same thing. It violates our constitutional rights. From what I have learned about the NSA surveillance, it is just as illegal as COINTELPRO and for the same reason -- because it violates our Constitution and its guarantees of human rights for all American. Its ultimate purpose is to silence dissent. The only reason that people think it is legal is that they don't really understand what it is doing. That's my best guess.

And it is only a guess because the program is secret.

You can assume that the NSA surveillance is harmless and legal. But you can't prove it. Two courts have found it illegal and one has found it legal. But neither we nor the courts know the full extent of the program.

So my guess is as good as anyone else's.