How the Government Deceived Congress in the Debate over Surveillance Powers (2013)
3 hours ago
- #NSA
- #government transparency
- #surveillance
- Senator Ron Wyden questioned DNI James Clapper about NSA data collection on millions of Americans, to which Clapper falsely replied 'No, sir ... not wittingly.'
- Clapper later defended his misleading statement by claiming it was the 'least untruthful manner,' relying on narrow definitions of 'collection' that differ from common usage.
- The NSA considers data 'collected' only after processing, allowing them to intercept and store communications without acknowledging it as collection.
- Clapper compared the NSA's database to a library, arguing that data isn't 'collected' until accessed, a misleading analogy.
- Congress has been misled by the Administration's deceptive language, undermining democratic oversight of mass surveillance programs.
- EFF calls for a full investigation into the NSA's collection of phone and internet records of millions of Americans.