“More and more Americans are getting swept up in these (FISA) searches,” Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) told Congress during the confirmation hearing of former Senator Dan Coates. Coates has been nominated by President Trump to head of the National Security Agency.
“We are trying to legitimately go after foreign targets that are a threat to us. But as telecommunications systems become globally integrated, we’re getting more and more law-abiding citizens swept up.”
FISA (The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act) is the law that authorizes spying on foreigners and American who are suspected of certain illegal activities. By the way, this is the law that Donald Trump says was allegedly used against him by the Obama Administration during the election campaign.
During the discussion, Wyden asked Coates if he would provide the number of innocent, law abiding Americans that have been caught up in this legal system.
I need “to get this committee, not just those numbers, but all the information they need, in which to make a judgment as to the reauthorization” of the FISA law, Coates responded.
Wyden asked Coates, “So you will commit to making sure we have the number of innocent Americans being swept up before the reauthorization. Will you commit to declassifying any secret legal interpretations related to FISA as well?”
Coates said he would — as long as declassification would not expose sensitive sources and methods.
Later in the hearing, Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) followed up on Wyden’s line of questioning about the number of Americans swept up in FISA intelligence gathering:
“First of all, it is illegal to target American citizens, correct?” Cornyn asked Coates.
“That is correct,” Coates said.
“Without a search warrant,” Cornyn added.
“That is correct,” Coates said again.
“So what we are talking about primarily is targeting foreign intelligence persons overseas,” Cornyn said.
“(Section) 702 is specifically designed for that purpose,” Coates said.
Cornyn said the director of the FBI recently referred to Section 702 as “the crown jewels” of the intelligence community. “Would you agree with that characterization?” he asked Coates.
“I would, and the intelligence community also sees it that way, the entire community,” Coates agreed.
Cornyn said he doesn’t want the debate over reauthorization of Section 702 to get “caught up in that same sort of hysteria where some people were worried that their own government was spying on them when that decidedly was untrue. But that’s history,” he added.
Cornyn continued: “I want people to understand that people aren’t targeted, even foreign agents overseas, without court approval. And there is judicial review from time to time as well as “oversight and review” by the executive branch, the intelligence community and the Congress.
“There are layers of protection to make sure that no American has to worry about their own government spying on them. In fact, every conceivable effort is being made to prevent that and protect the privacy rights of Americans, which we all agree is important,” Cornyn continued.
Cornyn asked Coates to work with Congress “to educate” Americans “so that they can be reassured” that Section 702 is striking the “proper balance” between privacy rights and national security.
“Well, Senator, I couldn’t agree with you more,” Coates said.
“The level of oversight here is all three branches of government, and it is significant to try to secure those privacies.”
But, added Coates, “We need to ensure that the public is not led into a situation where they think they’re… sweeping up, collecting information about them…”
One week later, Wikileaks dumped a huge trove of details concerning how the CIA taps virtually every device connect to the Internet and targets Americans with abandon and without FISA court approval creating chaos in the intelligence community and among businesses and the telecommunications industry.
One day soon, these tools will be turned against those who keep all the commandments of Jesus. They will have no place to hide except the angels of God protect them. Surveillance will be a very big part of the final crisis for God’s people.
“We have no time to lose. The end is near. The passage from place to place to spread the truth will soon be hedged with dangers on the right hand and on the left. Everything will be placed to obstruct the way of the Lord’s messengers, so that they will not be able to do that which it is possible for them to do now. We must look our work fairly in the face, and advance as fast as possible in aggressive [spiritual] warfare. From the light given me of God I know that the powers of darkness are working with intense energy from beneath, and with stealthy tread Satan is advancing to take those who are now asleep, as a wolf taking his prey. We have warnings now, which we may give, a work now which we may do; but soon it will be more difficult than we can imagine.” Testimonies for the Church Vol. 6 page 22.
Comments
Jane Cort
Saturday March 18th, 2017 at 11:08 PMTheses summaries are becoming less and less objective. Too many times, there’s is a comment included in the midst of the article that seems to indicate the political leanings of the author, regardless of the “disclaimer”. Too bad because these interjections lessen the impact of what otherwise could be a trustworthy source of important events in the end times in which we are now living.
admin
Friday March 24th, 2017 at 10:44 AMOur post is categorically non-political. We are biased toward prophecy and its fulfillment in current events. We are not political. Prophecy necessarily impacts things political. So, to the superficial reader it may seem that we are taking sides on a political issue. But nothing is farther from the truth. Admin.