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Curated research library of TV news clips regarding the NSA, its oversight and privacy issues, 2009-2014

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Primary curation & research: Robin Chin, Internet Archive TV News Researcher; using Internet Archive TV News service.

Speakers

Patrick Leahy
U.S. Senator (D- Vermont), Judiciary Committee Chairman
CSPAN 07/31/2013
Leahy: As I understand the government believes that every domestic phone record is relevant to a terrorism investigation and can be obtained using section 215 of the Patriot Act. I understand the FISA court agrees with that interpretation. But you then place restrictions on how it can be used once you’ve collected it . But I don’t understand what limits there might be under this theory. Couldn’t you invoke under section 215 to obtain
Patrick Leahy
U.S. Senator (D- Vermont), Judiciary Committee Chairman
CSPAN 07/31/2013
Leahy continued 1: virtually all available commercial data. America’s phone records are relevant. How about our credit card records? What sites we go one on the internet? What we may bookmark? Our medical records that we have on computer? Our firearms records.
Patrick Leahy
U.S. Senator (D- Vermont), Judiciary Committee Chairman
CSPAN 07/31/2013
Leahy continued 2: all those things available? Cole: I think there’s two important points here. Number one is that the only way the court finds these relevant is in the context of the restrictions and in features the context of what it is you’re looking for. So you have to take all of those features of this phone record process into account of, how can it be done? How reasonably can it be done, what is the need for speed?
Patrick Leahy
U.S. Senator (D- Vermont), Judiciary Committee Chairman
CSPAN 07/31/2013
Cole continued: What is the need to integrate all the different records that are coming together? And finds only when you look at that entire mix, that this kind of program with these restrictions. To your question, you would have to make that same showing for those other kinds of records as to the need for that breadth and the need for those restrictions. Leahy: if our phone records are relevant, why wouldn’t our credit card records? Wouldn't you like to know if somebody’s buying fertilizer used in bombs?
Patrick Leahy
U.S. Senator (D- Vermont), Judiciary Committee Chairman
CSPAN 07/31/2013
Cole: I may not need to collect everybody’s credit card records in order to do that. Because again, we’re not collecting all their phone records so that we can wander through them and it’s only the phone records being done to look at the connections. If somebody’s buying things that could be used to make bombs, of course we would like to know that but we may not need to do it in this fashion. Leahy: Dr. Clapper said it would
Patrick Leahy
U.S. Senator (D- Vermont), Judiciary Committee Chairman
CSPAN 07/31/2013
Leahy continued 1A: notify Congress before obtaining cell phone location information under this program. But is there any legal impediment to expanding the program for cell phone location? Cole: I don’t believe there would be a legal impediment. And yesterday the 5th circuit issued a ruling that goes to that issue but the legal impediments are not the only issues that you take into account here. Leahy: I understand
Patrick Leahy
U.S. Senator (D- Vermont), Judiciary Committee Chairman
CSPAN 07/31/2013
Leahy: this is a debate that several of us on this committee and both parties have been trying to have for years. I will get the classified briefings but then of course you cannot talk about them. A lot of these things that should be and can be discussed. And if we're going to have the debate that the president called for and the executive branch has been a full partner.
Patrick Leahy
U.S. Senator (D- Vermont), Judiciary Committee Chairman
CSPAN 07/31/2013
Leahy: We need straight forward answers. I am concerned we’re not getting them. Just recently the Director of National Intelligence acknowledged he provided false testament about the NSA surveillance program during a senate hearing in march. His office had to remove a fact sheet from it’s web site after concerns were raised about it’s accuracy. I appreciate it is difficult talking about classified programs in public settings. The American people expect and deserve honest answers it’s all been far too difficult to get a straight answer about the effectiveness (of the phone records program)
Patrick Leahy
U.S. Senator (D- Vermont), Judiciary Committee Chairman
CSPAN 07/31/2013
Leahy continued: privacy implications. The phone records of all of us in this room, all of us in this room, reside in an NSA database. I have said repeatedly just because we have the ability to collect huge amounts of data does not mean that we should be doing so. Fact is it has been reported that the bulk collection of internet meta- data was shut down because it failed to produce meaningful intelligence.
Patrick Leahy
U.S. Senator (D- Vermont), Judiciary Committee Chairman
CSPAN 07/31/2013
Leahy: We need to take an equally close look at the phone records program. This program is not effective. It has to end. So far I am not convinced by what i have seen. I am sure we will hear from witnesses who say this -- these programs are critical .Have been identified to connect the so called dots. There is always going to be dots to collect and analyze and try to connect. The government is
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