NSA Violated Domestic Wiretap Limits

Administration tells Congress it wants to renew surveillance laws

(AP) - The Obama administration supports extending three controversial provisions of the Patriot Act that are due to expire at the end of the year, AP reports. The Justice Department tells Congress in a letter they will back preserving the post-9/11 law's authority to access business records, monitor so-called "lone wolf" terrorists, who have no known ties to terrorist groups, and conduct roving wiretaps. But they also expressed a willingness to add privacy protections if they don't weaken the law's effectiveness. More»

(NEWSER) - The embattled Bush administration lawyer who drafted memos justifying waterboarding and warrantless wiretaps is fighting back as his role comes under greater scrutiny, the Washington Post reports. John Yoo, now a University of California law professor, has been giving speeches around the country defending the tactics and his view that their use came under the president's authority. More»

President had right to violate 'obsolete' FISA, Bush lawyer writes

(NEWSER) - Last week the inspectors general of the Justice Department, CIA, and other agencies suggested the Bush administration violated the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, singling out lawyer John Yoo for memos justifying warrantless wiretapping. Yoo defends himself today in a Wall Street Journal op-ed, writing that FISA was "an obsolete law" that the president had a constitutional responsibility to override. "Gathering intelligence—including intercepting enemy communications—has long been a key aspect of war," he says. More»

Counsel orders adviser to keep mum; Gonzales stands pat on testimony

(NEWSER) - The White House has ordered Karl Rove to keep quiet—despite a subpoena by congressional Dems probing the US Attorney firings. In a political fait accompli, counsel Fred Fielding told the Senate Judiciary Committee that the adviser is "immune from compelled congressional testimony" about White House machinations. More»

National Security Agency plan was banned by Congress years ago

(NEWSER) - Looks like Congress can't stop the NSA from monitoring every nook and cranny of our lives after all. In an explosive feature in Wired , James Bamford reveals that the National Security Agency has revived a program called "Total Information Awareness," which aims to collect and sift through every electronic communication around the world. Yep, that includes those made by Americans—even though Congress passed legislation in 2003 to stop "TIA" from spying on US citizens. More»