Facing growing criticism of President Obama’s attempts to ditch responsibility for the NSA’s surveillance of foreign leaders, the White House once again rejected the idea of blaming the president for the program, insisting President Obama would never think of spying on friendly leaders.
“When the president wants to find out what the heads of state of friendly nations think, he calls them,” insisted press secretary Jay Carney, who added Obama’s interest in terrorism centered on “terrorism intercepts.”
There’s a growing fight between the NSA and the State Department as well, with the NSA insisting that they were only tapping all these foreign leaders because ambassadors keep asking them for intelligence.
Former Ambassador Thomas Pickering said it was far-fetched that the NSA was perceiving every request for intelligence as a green-light to bug friendly leaders, adding that he didn’t think ambassadors would be nearly so persuasive with such a request.
It says more than the government realizes that it continues to breezily justify the Total Surveillance State directed at every American citizen, but goes into a panic of huffy denials and "correcting overreaches" when spying on foreign leaders is revealed. More than anything it reveals who the government itself feels itself responsible to.
For someone so seemingly unaware of evil things being done right under his nose, why are so many flies buzzing around him?
Maybe someone needs to give Obama a "Fly Swatter."
Flies are attracted to steaming piles.
Based on what little is really known when considering the finger pointing going on, one is left with the thought that perhaps the NSA had gone rogue, much like the FBI did under Hoover. Now, I'm not sure I believe that Obama was "uninformed" about the surveillance of our allies – seems unlikely…but not impossible. But the NSA responding to "requests" from Ambassadors for intelligence sounds very likely based on the overzealous mindset of the NSA in these terrorist rich times. Like his predecessor, Hayden, Alexander seems to be completely under the spell of the Total Information Awareness scourge.
Rogue, of course, but because of the level of secrecy our government operates under, deniable.
Not only "friendly leaders", but perhaps even "designated enemies" like Iran should be talked to and believed rather than spied on and assumed to be lying. I suppose the USA is so used to lying it assumes everyone else always lies too. Hard to negotiate when this is the attitude.
Just because my name is Jay Carney doesn't mean I AM a carny or that I WORK for carnies!
Carney, Obama and all these scumbags ought to be hanged for being unAmerican.
At times, I wonder whether they're not bent on destroying the US.