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NSA Surveillance Critics – Including Glenn Greenwald – to Testify Before Congress

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Photo Credit: Michael Reynolds/EPACongress will hear testimony from critics of the National Security Agency’s surveillance practices for the first time since the whistleblower Edward Snowden’s explosive leaks were made public.

[Glenn Greenwald, the Guardian journalist who first revealed details of the surveillance programmes leaked by Snowden, had also been invited to testify via video-link from his base in Rio.]

Democratic congressman Alan Grayson, who is leading a bipartisan group of congressman organising the hearing, told the Guardian it would serve to counter the “constant misleading information” from the intelligence community.

The hearing, which will take place on Wednesday, comes amid evidence of a growing congressional rebellion NSA data collection methods.

On Wednesday, a vote in the House of Representatives that would have tried to curb the NSA’s practice of mass collection of phone records of millions of Americans was narrowly defeated.

However, it exposed broader-than-expected concern among members of Congress over US surveillance tactics…

Read more from this story HERE.

Obama Circumvents Congress Again, Orders Millions in Aid to Palestinians

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Photo Credit: APPresident Obama on Friday afternoon ordered another waiver of congressional restrictions on direct funding of the Palestinian Authority, clearing the way for more U.S. aid.

In the one-page order, Mr. Obama said he was taking the action due to the “national security interests” of the U.S. The move comes as the administration is preparing to host renewed direct talks in Washington between Palestinians and Israelis for the first time since 2010.

The president in March directed about $500 million to be sent to the Palestinian Authority, also waiving the restrictions set by Congress.

Read more from this story HERE.

The McWeiners of the World

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Most news accounts treated these as two separate scandals: Anthony Weiner, the disgraced Democratic congressman and would-be mayor of New York, had been exposed again as a digital flasher, sending “selfie” pictures of his privates to women. Bob McDonnell, the Republican governor of Virginia, was found to be taking gifts and loans from a businessman McDonnell had helped…

By coincidence, both men found themselves apologizing for their misdeeds on the same day, July 23. McDonnell’s was cowardly, done via Twitter while he was out of the country; Weiner’s was handled in yet another bizarre news conference. But both were reluctant, their statements less expressions of contrition than naked efforts to make the problems go away. These were the apologies of narcissists…

Their offenses are similarly pointless: Weiner threw away a promising career by exchanging smut with women he claims he never met. McDonnell, once mentioned as a possible presidential candidate, undid his reputation by accepting sums — a $6,500 Rolex, a $15,000 splurge at Bergdorf Goodman — that were trivial compared to those he could have earned after leaving office.

Both men seem to have the condition that afflicts so many officeholders who get into trouble, from Clinton to Foley to Sanford to Spitzer: a sense of invincibility, and a belief that the usual rules don’t apply to them. They take ever bigger risks, as if it is a form of thrill-seeking, or they can no longer gauge risk…

The narcissistic strain is common, and it predates the rise to power. It takes a certain personality to believe that one is meant to lead. This is reinforced once in power by sycophantic staffers. The problem has become worse as congressional redistricting leaves more lawmakers with safe seats, but the phenomenon is not Washington’s alone: McDonnell honed his invincibility in Richmond, and Weiner continued his behavior after resigning his House seat.

Read more from this story HERE.

Congress to Probe Lethal Crash that Killed SEAL Team 6 Members

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Congress has launched an investigation of the helicopter crash that killed 30 Americans in Afghanistan, including members of the Navy’s elite SEAL Team 6 unit, The Hill has learned.

The victims’ families say the Pentagon hasn’t provided answers to their many questions about the deadly attack, which took place on Aug. 6, 2011, three months after Osama bin Laden was killed in Pakistan by Team 6 forces.

Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform subcommittee on National Security, told The Hill, “We’re going to dive into this.”

Read more from this story HERE.

OFA Embraces Tea Party Blueprint for August Push

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Photo Credit: APIf Organizing for Action’s plans come together, 2013 will be its turn to make trouble for members of Congress back home in their districts.

Four years after the tea party surprised Democrats at town halls that led to the Republican wave of 2010, the political action group formed out of the remains of President Barack Obama’s campaign laid out its plans Monday for Action August, a month of activity meant to break congressional opposition to the White House agenda.

OFA’s preparing a range of under-the-national-radar tactics in conjunction with heading for town halls. Rallies, distribution of fliers and district office demonstrations will be aimed at drawing the same sort of local attention that tea party groups managed four years ago, hoping to spook members of Congress worried about the 2014 midterms.

But with Obama off to a sometimes disappointing and dispiriting start to his second term, the question is one the president himself asked volunteers Monday night: “Are you still fired up?”

The crowd cheered “Yes!” but they’ll need more than that.

Read more from this story HERE.

Congressional Black Caucus Now Lining Up Behind Jesse Jackson’s “Boycott Florida for Trayvon” Campaign

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Photo Credit: david_shankboneA number of House Democrats are lining up behind the Rev. Jesse Jackson’s threat for an economic boycott of Florida following the not-guilty verdict in the death of Trayvon Martin.

The lawmakers, all members of the Congressional Black Caucus, are fierce critics of the process that led to George Zimmerman’s acquittal in the fatal shooting last year of the Florida teenager. Exerting pressure on Florida’s economy as Jackson is suggesting, they said, could help overturn the state’s controversial stand-your-ground laws that many contend contributed to the tragedy.

“That’s probably the best strategy, because people understand dollars and cents,” Rep. Lacy Clay (D-Mo.) said Friday. “And they understand, if there’s a significant drop-off in revenues – at conventions, at Disney World and Universal Studios – that that will get the attention of the powerful.”

Clay said he’d like to see “a multi-pronged strategy” that includes legislation, “getting laws overturned by courts, as well as an economic boycott.”

Rep. Bennie Thompson echoed that message. The Mississippi Democrat called the verdict “a travesty” that “does not speak well for this country,” and said he would “absolutely” support an economic boycott of the state.

Read more from this story HERE.

Anonymous Hacked into Official Congressional Email, Threatens to Compromise Accounts if Congress Doesn’t Act to End Surveillance State

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Photo Credit: GettyHacker posts email addresses, passwords of House and Senate staffers online

By Alex Pappas. A hacktivist associated with Anonymous claims to have posted online thousands of email addresses and passwords for Capitol Hill staffers.

According to a Twitter account that posted a link to the hacked information, House and Senate staffers were targeted in protest of the National Security Agency’s domestic spying program.

“Dear #Congress: We are paying very, very close attention to how you handle #NSA #FISA & #PRISM Don’t.. F**k.. Up….,” Twitter user OpLastResort wrote before posting a link to the email addresses and passwords.

PRISM is the government’s secret data mining program recently revealed by NSA leaker Edward Snowden. FISA refers to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act which deals with electronic surveillance. Read more from this story HERE.

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Photo Credit: AFPWhite House stays silent on renewal of NSA data collection order

By Spencer Ackerman. The Obama administration is refusing to say whether it will seek to renew a court order that permits the National Security Agency’s bulk collection of phone records on millions of Verizon customers when it expires at the end of this week.

Officials declined to discuss what action they intend to take about the order at the center of the current surveillance scandal, which formally expires at 5pm Friday.

The looming expiration of the order, issued by the secretive Fisa court, provides an early test of Barack Obama’s claim to welcome debate over “how to strike this balance” between liberty and security. Beyond the question of the phone records collection, the court order authorizing it is a state secret.

On Thursday, the administration would not answer a question first posed by the Guardian six days ago about its intentions to continue, modify or discontinue the Verizon bulk-collection order. The White House referred queries to the Justice Department. “We have no announcement at this time,” said Justice Department spokesman Brian Fallon. The NSA and office of the Director of National Intelligence did not respond to questions.

A spokesman for the Fisa court, Sheldon Snook, said the court “respectfully declines to comment”. Read more from this story HERE.

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NSA chief says leak damage ‘irresponsible and irreversible’

By Catherine Herridge. National Security Agency chief Keith Alexander said Thursday the damage from recently leaked information is “irresponsible and irreversible” because it has given terrorist groups the intelligence community’s “playbook.”

He also described the leaks as “crazy.”

Addressing the Aspen Security Forum, Alexander said the NSA was secretive about its programs out of necessity because the “operatives are among us.”

He added that, based on damage assessments, there is “concrete proof” terrorists now have changed their tactics. Read more from this story HERE.

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Photo Credit: gaelxCongress: Anonymous Hack Got Only Old Emails and Passwords

By Ginger Gibson. The hacking group Anonymous published the login information for a constituent contact system used by thousands of congressional staffers, posting addresses and passwords on an online message board, according to a memo sent to Hill staffers.

Anonymous presented the information — when it on Thursday posted more than 2,100 email addresses and passwords, as login data for official congressional email accounts. But in a memo to staff from the Office of the Chief Administrator of the House, officials said the information was actually old login data for iConstituent, which is an online system used to contact voters.

“While this incident did not compromise the House email system, out of an abundance of caution, iConstituent Gateway eNewsletter account holders will be required to change their House network login,” said the memo, which was obtained by POLITICO.

The passwords, some of which belonged to individuals who no longer work for Congress, were expired, according to the memo.

“Earlier today, hackers disclosed expired login information (email addresses and passwords) of numerous iConstituent Gateway eNewsletter accounts outside of the House network,” the memo stated. “These passwords have expired and can no longer be used to access the external iConstituent service.” Read more from this story HERE.

Tom Marino, GOP Congressman, Floats Idea Of Filing Criminal Charges Against Obama

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Photo Credit: Tom Williams/CQ Roll CallRep. Tom Marino (R-Pa.) revealed in a Thursday interview that he is exploring avenues by which members of Congress could try to pursue criminal charges against President Barack Obama.

Earlier this month, the Obama administration announced a delay in the implementation of an Affordable Care Act provision that will require businesses employing more than 50 people to provide them with health insurance. The delay, which puts off the requirement until 2015, drew much criticism from the GOP. The Treasury Department has since released a letter defending the decision as a means of providing “transition relief” for companies.

To say that Marino is critical of the decision may be an understatement. During an interview on local Scranton, Pa., station “94.3 The Talker,” the congressman slammed both the president for allegedly taking illegal action and Attorney General Eric Holder for failing to do anything about it.

“If the chief law enforcer of the country [Holder] will not enforce the law,” said Marino, “and the president decides to break the law because he doesn’t like it, there has to be another mechanism by which we in Congress can … see if there are criminal charges we can file.”

Read more from this story HERE.

Director of National Intelligence Clapper Won’t Resign Over Lying to Congress

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Photo Credit: APDirector of National Intelligence James Clapper has no plans to resign following disclosures to the Senate Intelligence Committee that he misled Congress on widespread National Security Agency electronic surveillance of Americans.

“DNI Clapper explained his response in the letter to Chairman [Dianne] Feinstein [(D., Calif.)] and apologized for the misunderstanding,” said Michael Birmingham, spokesperson for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Clapper “values the decades-long stellar relationship he has with Congress and remains focused on leading the intelligence community,” Birmingham told the Free Beacon in a statement Monday.

White House National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden said: “The president has full confidence in Director Clapper and his leadership of the Intelligence Community.”

Clapper disclosed in a June 21 letter to Feinstein that his answer to questions about the electronic surveillance were “erroneous” during March 2013 testimony before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.

Read more from this story HERE.

National Intelligence Director Clapper Apologizes for Lying, Now Suggests He Was Confused

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Photo Credit: AP

Photo Credit: AP

Director of National Intelligence James Clapper has apologized for telling Congress the National Security Agency doesn’t gather data on millions of Americans.

The apology comes after former NSA contractor Edward Snowden gave top-secret information to newspapers that last month published stories about the federal government collecting the data from phone calls and such Internet communications as emails.

Clapper apologized in a letter to Senate Intelligence Committee Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein that was posted Tuesday on the website of Clapper’s office.

Clapper said in the June 21 letter that his answer was “clearly erroneous”…

Clapper said in the letter to Feinstein that when answering he was confounded by the word dossier and challenged by trying to protect classified information. He also said that when answering Wyden, he was focused on whether the U.S. collected the content of phone and email conversations, and not so-called metadata, which essentially is phone numbers, email addresses, dates and times. He wrote that he “simply didn’t think of” the pertinent section of the Patriot Act under which that information can be collected.

Read more from this story HERE.