The Administration’s pattern of deceit re: eavesdropping
One of the many pressing questions in the NSA scandal is this: If the Administration really believed that the AUMF gave it the authority to eavesdrop outside of FISA, why did it never say so, even as Congress was plainly operating under the assumption that the Administration was eavesdropping only with the judicial oversight required by FISA?
Not only did the Administration never claim that it had authority to eavesdrop outside of FISA (that is, it never claimed this until it got caught doing so), far worse is that the Administration repeatedly and deliberately misled both the Congress and the public into believing that it was always complying with FISA and that it was eavesdropping only with the judicial oversight and approval required by the law.
The Administration’s deceit took place over several years and in many different venues. The record of this deceit should always begin with this statement by George Bush on April 20, 2004, as part of a speech he delivered in Buffalo, New York:
That statement is an outright falsehood, and it is extremely serious. The President was attempting to address civil liberties concerns regarding the Administration’s wiretap activities, and he stated, falsely, that "any time you hear the U.S. Government talking about wiretaps, it requires – a wiretap requires a court order." He did not limit his assurances to eavesdropping conducted under FISA. To the contrary, he went out of his way to made clear that he was talking about all eavesdropping, and thus emphasized that a court order is required -- to use his words -- "any time you hear the United States talking about wiretap."
Why is George Bush allowed to make baldly false statements to Americans about matters of the gravest importance? Why is there not more outrage and controversy over the fact that the President stood up in front of the country and lied about the Government’s eavesdropping activities by assuring us that the only wiretaps that were done on American citizens first required a court order?
That question is not answered by claiming that national security required the President not to divulge the eavesdropping program, because he did not have to say anything at all. When he made his false statement, he wasn’t responding to a question. This statement was part of his pre-scripted speech. And as part of that speech, in an effort to campaign for his own re-election and for renewal of the Patriot Act, he falsely assured Americans that there was no ground for worrying about excesses with regard to eavesdropping because the only eavesdropping that is done is done under judicial oversight.
Not only did the Administration never claim that it had authority to eavesdrop outside of FISA (that is, it never claimed this until it got caught doing so), far worse is that the Administration repeatedly and deliberately misled both the Congress and the public into believing that it was always complying with FISA and that it was eavesdropping only with the judicial oversight and approval required by the law.
The Administration’s deceit took place over several years and in many different venues. The record of this deceit should always begin with this statement by George Bush on April 20, 2004, as part of a speech he delivered in Buffalo, New York:
Secondly, there are such things as roving wiretaps. Now, by the way, any time you hear the United States government talking about wiretap, it requires -- a wiretap requires a court order. Nothing has changed, by the way. When we're talking about chasing down terrorists, we're talking about getting a court order before we do so.
That statement is an outright falsehood, and it is extremely serious. The President was attempting to address civil liberties concerns regarding the Administration’s wiretap activities, and he stated, falsely, that "any time you hear the U.S. Government talking about wiretaps, it requires – a wiretap requires a court order." He did not limit his assurances to eavesdropping conducted under FISA. To the contrary, he went out of his way to made clear that he was talking about all eavesdropping, and thus emphasized that a court order is required -- to use his words -- "any time you hear the United States talking about wiretap."
Why is George Bush allowed to make baldly false statements to Americans about matters of the gravest importance? Why is there not more outrage and controversy over the fact that the President stood up in front of the country and lied about the Government’s eavesdropping activities by assuring us that the only wiretaps that were done on American citizens first required a court order?
That question is not answered by claiming that national security required the President not to divulge the eavesdropping program, because he did not have to say anything at all. When he made his false statement, he wasn’t responding to a question. This statement was part of his pre-scripted speech. And as part of that speech, in an effort to campaign for his own re-election and for renewal of the Patriot Act, he falsely assured Americans that there was no ground for worrying about excesses with regard to eavesdropping because the only eavesdropping that is done is done under judicial oversight.
[snip]