DNI Mike McConnell: FISA Debate Will Kill Americans

[babylonsister]

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/003976.php

McConnell: FISA Debate Will Kill Americans
By Spencer Ackerman - August 22, 2007, 5:30 PM

With a heavy heart, Director of National Intelligence Michael McConnell told a Texas newspaper last week that due to the public debate over revising the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, Americans will die.

McConnell, who before the late July-early August FISA legislation enjoyed broad bipartisan respect, placed the predicted deaths of Americans at the doorstep of an open society. Thanks to widespread efforts to understand what the NSA's highly classified warrantless surveillance program is -- from journalists, from legal scholars, from national security experts, from elected officials -- the Bush administration was forced last month to reveal too much about how the program operates, in order to correct misunderstandings. And that means, McConnell said, "Americans are going to die."

...So that's, we've got a lot of territory to make up with people believing that we're doing things we're not doing.

Q: Even if it's perception, how do you deal with that? You have to do public relations, I assume.

A: Well, one of the things you do is you talk to reporters. And you give them the facts the best you can. Now part of this is a classified world. The fact we're doing it this way means that some Americans are going to die, because we do this mission unknown to the bad guys because they're using a process that we can exploit and the more we talk about it, the more they will go with an alternative means and when they go to an alternative means, remember what I said, a significant portion of what we do, this is not just threats against the United States, this is war in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Emphasis added.

McConnell, when questioned by the reporter, seemed to understand that he had gone too far -- but nonetheless reiterated his point:

Q. So you're saying that the reporting and the debate in Congress means that some Americans are going to die?

A. That's what I mean. Because we have made it so public. We used to do these things very differently, but for whatever reason, you know, it's a democratic process and sunshine's a good thing. We need to have the debate. The reason that the FISA law was passed in 1978 was an arrangement was worked out between the Congress and the administration, we did not want to allow this community to conduct surveillance, electronic surveillance, of Americans for foreign intelligence unless you had a warrant, so that was required. So there was no warrant required for a foreign target in a foreign land. And so we are trying to get back to what was the intention of '78. Now because of the claim, counterclaim, mistrust, suspicion, the only way you could make any progress was to have this debate in an open way.

more...

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/003976.php

[pepperbear]

1. PLEASE no one believe this. not even the stupid ass freepers

could swallow this one.

This is one frightening piece of propaganda.

[babylonsister]

4. I'm just worried about speakers and majority leaders...

:scared:

[wryter2000]

2. Will they ever collapse under the weight of their own ridiculousness?

Is ridiculousness a word?

[babylonsister]

3. It is now.

:evilgrin:

[FiveGoodMen]

5. Aren't we supposed to be ready to die to maintain a free society?

[Mnemosyne]

6. Another warning from the PTB. When is

the next attack here?

Cheney
Gonzo
Scumtorum
McConnel

Who else? Seems there were at least a couple more with that mantra.

[Hydra]

7. I told the apologists

That having this guy and Gonzo working on this program WILL NOT provide any oversight.

"But the Dems made them have McConnell as well as Gonzo audit the program! That was a win!"

Ya, I feel SO MUCH BETTER knowing this guy is authorizing wiretapping with Gonzo now.

:puke:

[warren pease]

8. And yet, 245,000 americans have died in car crashes since 9/11/01...

That's according to a piece in the 8/5/07 edition of the LA Times by Greg Easterbrook entitled "Road Kill."

<<<Why are we so worried about terrorism when so many more people are dying on our highways?

Suppose 245,000 americans had died in terrorist attacks since Sept. 11, 2001. The United States would be beside itself, utterly gripped by a sense of national emergency. Political leaders would speak of nothing else, the United States military would stand at maximum readiness, and the White House would vow not to rest until the danger to Americans had been utterly eradicated.

Yet 245,000 Americans have died because of one specific threat since 9/11, and no one seems to care. While the tragedy of 3,000 lives lost on 9/11 has justified two wars, in which thousands of U.S. soldiers made the ultimate sacrifice, the tragedy of 245,000 lives lost in traffic accidents on the nation's roads during the same period has justified . . . pretty much no response at all. Terrorism is on the front page day in and day out, but the media rarely even mention road deaths. A few days ago, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced that 42,642 Americans died in traffic in 2006. Did you hear this reported anywhere?>>>

Rest of the article here:

http://tinyurl.com/2lhst5


So, some terrorists killed about 3,000 americans on 9/11/01. Some believe it was an Al Qaeda operation run from a remote cave in Afghanistan. Others that it was a home-grown, false flag BushCo production. But no matter the source, many Americans have been running around like terrified lunatics ever since, responding to the manipulated terror level colors as if doomsday were at hand whenever they see orange. And of course a terrified populace is a malleable populace, and BushCo has seized the opportunity and run the same tired fear mongering campaign since the early afternoon of 9/11/01.

And so, in an effort to have normal lives, they get in their cars, go shopping, pick up the kids, drive them to soccer practice, whatever the hell middle america does while their fathers and breadwinners are off conquering markets and watching computerized porn.

Some 42,642 of them never made it home in 2006. However, the car hasn't yet become a symbol of terror for americans; just the opposite, it seems, as they spend ever more hours in the daily crawl that has replaced actual driving in most of the country's population centers. Traffic scares me considerably more than bin Laden ever will. Now *that's* terrorism.

Anyway, it's just another tribute to BushCo's ability to manipulate fears and turn to the regime for protection. Having virtually all mass media on their side hasn't hurt much either.


wp

[NanceGreggs]

9. Yeah, uh huh, I know ...

... Americans are going to die on account of asking questions.

[struggle4progress]

10. Must be lookin forward to the fall

http://www.lahosken.san-francisco.ca.us.nyud.net:8090/importable/jack_o_lanterns_2006.jpg
http://lahosken.san-francisco.ca.us/new/2006/10/book-report-making-comics.html

[midnight]

11. I'm glad to see that folks in this administration are concerned

for American life's. Now that I said that, Bring Them Home............ To many Americans are being killed in this war.....I'm afraid many more will die as a result of trying to give American oil company's first dibs on this resource. So let's stop this oil talk and bring them home-ASAP.