Udall/Wyden say they have not seen any evidence NSA program has uniquely provided valuable intel

[dkf]

Senators Mark Udall and Ron Wyden, who serve on the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, called on Gen. Keith B. Alexander, the head of the National Security Agency and U.S. Cyber Command, to clarify his statements that the surveillance programs disclosed through leaks over the past week have helped avert "dozens of terrorist attacks" in recent years.

Alexander testified yesterday that the collection of millions of Americans' phone records was "critical in corroborating" information gleaned through the PRISM program, without providing further information.

"We have not yet seen any evidence showing that the NSA's dragnet collection of Americans' phone records has produced any uniquely valuable intelligence. Gen. Alexander's testimony yesterday suggested that the NSA’s bulk phone records collection program helped thwart 'dozens' of terrorist attacks, but all of the plots that he mentioned appear to have been identified using other collection methods. The public deserves a clear explanation," Udall and Wyden said. "We look forward to reviewing the analysis that the general has promised to provide showing how the intelligence community arrived at these numbers. In our view, a key measure of the effectiveness of the bulk collection program will be whether it provided any intelligence that couldn’t be obtained through other methods."

Udall and Wyden questioned assertions last week that the NSA's bulk collection of Americans' phone records "has actually provided any uniquely valuable intelligence" beyond what is available through other, less intrusive surveillance programs: "As far as we can see, all of the useful information that it has provided appears to have also been available through other collection methods that do not violate the privacy of law-abiding Americans in the way that the Patriot Act collection does. We hope that President Obama will probe the basis for these assertions, as we have."

http://www.wyden.senate.gov/news/press-releases/udall-wyden-call-on-national-security-agency-director-to-clarify-comments-on-effectiveness-of-phone-data-collection-program

[kenny blankenship]

1. But ineffectuality is a small price to pay for voiding the 4th amendment

and leaving for future leaders the most exquisitely perfect mechanism for a police state ever devised or imagined - all just sitting there humming away, and waiting for them to drop it in gear. Isn't ineffectuality just a trifle and proof no harm is being done?

The price tag in dollars on the other hand - well it's certainly bigger than a trifle. And it's probably unknown to anyone alive. But with our economy running at full employment and prosperity spreading throughout the land,
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/12/inequality-us-_n_3421381.html?ref=topbar

can't we afford to treat our leadership to a few perks like this?

[AnotherMcIntosh]

2. K&R

[Laelth]

3. k&r for exposure. n/t

-Laelth

[SamKnause]

4. NSA

The proof backing up that statement is classified.

See how that works ?

Classified is code for we will do whatever the fuck we want.

[MjolnirTime]

5. They have their eyes closed.

[theaocp]

6. Obvious is as obvious demonstrates.

Care to elaborate?

[Quantess]

7. Looks like a good article.

I will read it later.

[magellan]

8. This is sounding more and more like the same crap they tried to sell us about torture. n/t

[Octafish]

9. Wyden and Udall couldn't even talk with the US public about the NSA program before Snowden...

Otherwise, they would've brought it up more than a year ago...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=440614

[dkf]

10. I admit I totally let that fly under my radar at the time.

It wasn't til Boston when Tim Clemente basically said the were keeping our cell calls that my antennae started tingling.

Wyden tried his best to expose this, questioning Clapper in public and the man lied straight to his face.

Finally Wyden and Udall get to delve into this solely due to Snowden and his actions.

[JDPriestly]

11. K&R

[Hydra]

12. See, this is the silly little detail that screws up the noisemachine

All the tools needed to deal with this Trillion Dollar Terrorist Threat(TM) were already on the books pre-9/11 and don't require all of this monitoring.

They only need this to watch us for dissent. Why would we dissent if we knew they were all squeaky clean?

You can see all of this as a massive admission of guilt from the people up top.

[thesquanderer]

13. Well, there's always torture (n/t)

[blkmusclmachine]

14. They're making a list,

And checking it twice.
They're gonna find out,
Who's gotta be iced.

[secondvariety]

15. Know why the Senators

haven't seen any evidence? Because the NSA bullshit operation doesn't work.