A half-hearted effort by the Obama Administration to distance itself from the latest NSA scandals, surrounding the surveillance of key allies, appears to be fueling anger among NSA officials who see the president as trying to stick them with the blame.
Over the past several days the White House has tried to ditch responsibility for the scandals, particularly the tapping of German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s cellphone for over a decade, claiming the NSA did it on their own and the president only just found out about the scheme.
NSA officials say that to the contrary, both the White House and the State Department had been repeatedly briefed on the surveillance, and both had signed off on the practice.
The officials say that whenever the NSA targeted a foreign leader, the US ambassador to that nation would be given regular reports on the information discovered, and the reports would likewise be sent to the White House.
“People are furious,” noted one of the officials, “this is officially the White House cutting off the intelligence community.” Having given the surveillance state enormous and largely unchecked power, the administration may now be creating a powerful enemy.
Some "intelligence community". They actually thought they could illegally spy on the whole world and nobody would ever find out?
It is inevitable in any situation where power and resources accumulate in high places that those at or near the top will turn on each other and their facilitators.
The same dynamics are at play amongst world leaders as we see in the GOP and, less dramatically but just as insidiously, in the Democratic party.
It is better they fight themselves than us.
We should do everything in our power to make it easy for them.
We should be grateful for people like Manning, Snowden, the other whistle-blowers and journalists for their courage on our behalf.
It is inevitable in any situation where power and resources accumulate in high places that those at or near the top will turn on each other and their facilitators.
The same dynamics are at play amongst world leaders as we see in the GOP and, less dramatically but just as insidiously, in the Democratic party.
It is better they fight themselves than us.
We should do everything in our power to make it easy for them.
We should be grateful for people like Manning, Snowden, the other whistle-blowers and journalists for their courage in fueling this conflict on our behalf.
It is inevitable in any situation where power and resources accumulate in high places that those at or near the top will turn on each other and their facilitators.
The same dynamics are at play amongst world leaders as we see in the GOP and, less dramatically but just as insidiously, in the Democratic party.
It is better they fight themselves than us.
We should do everything in our power to make it easy for them.
We should be grateful for people like Manning, Snowden, the other whistle-blowers and journalists for their courage in fueling this conflict on our behalf.
The venomous self-consuming serpent….a good thing to see.
I second your acknowledgement of the courageous whistle-blowers.
It is inevitable in any situation where power and resources accumulate in high places that those at or near the top will turn on each other and their facilitators.
The same dynamics are at play amongst world leaders as we see in the GOP and, less dramatically but just as insidiously, in the Democratic party.
It is better they fight themselves than us.
We should do everything in our power to make it easy for them.
We should be grateful for people like Manning, Snowden, the other whistle-blowers and journalists for their courage in fueling this conflict on our behalf.
It is inevitable in any situation where power and resources accumulate in high places that those at or near the top will turn on each other and their facilitators.
The same dynamics are at play amongst world leaders as we see in the GOP and, less dramatically but just as insidiously, in the Democratic party.
It is better they fight themselves than us.
We should do everything in our power to make it easy for them.
We should be grateful for people like Manning, Snowden, the other whistle-blowers and journalists for their courage in fueling this conflict on our behalf.
It is inevitable in any situation where power and resources accumulate in high places that those at or near the top will turn on each other and their facilitators.
The same dynamics are at play amongst world leaders as we see in the GOP and, less dramatically but just as insidiously, in the Democratic party.
It is better they fight themselves than us.
We should do everything in our power to make it easy for them.
We should be grateful for people like Manning, Snowden, the other whistle-blowers and journalists for their courage in fueling this conflict on our behalf.
Obama is an obvious liar.
And an obvious idiot in over his head,very similar to the shrub,another marionette twisting in the Zionist wind.All roads today that diminish America originated with the Israeli mole traitors within.
Obama is an obvious liar.
Obama is an obvious liar.
The war on terror has guaranteed that every man women and children are considered a terrorist and is targeted to be spied on and droned without due process of law. It's only typical of Obama to shift the blame and play dumb, knows nothing, see nothing, and hears nothing. Osama Bin Laden must be laughing from his watery grave.
can we continue under the pretense that we have been subjects of the security deep state without a functioning republic for several decades going back to Kennedy and Vietnam
We've all heard, "The enemy of my enemy is my friend," but when two of your enemies are at each other's throats all you can do is watch and hope they destroy each other.