Did Justice Dept subpoena AP records under authority of the FISA act passed by Congress?

[kentuck]

If so, who is really to blame?

It sounds bad but was it done in a legal manner? If so, we can see just how far we have gone with the Patriot Act and the FISA laws, etc.

I think maybe we should withhold judgement until we know more of the facts?

[NYC_SKP]

1. Gee. If only the Associated Press and other media outlets had worked harder to....

present a balanced case about FISA and Patriot Act, etc.,; a presentation that might have provided more popular resistance to these privacy-depriving policies.

Hmmmm.

[CJCRANE]

2. AP released classified information.

That's the story. That's the illegal part. That's why there's an investigation.

[DonViejo]

3. Just picked this up in an article at Salon...

Which Obama scandal will inevitably lead to impeachment?

The GOP's second term scandal machine is operational! Will Obama be sunk by the IRS, the AP or Benghazi?

BY ALEX PAREENE

-snip-

AP Phone Logs

The Justice Department obtained two months worth of phone records from Associated Press reporters, receiving access to logs from personal and work phones from AP offices and from the personal phones of AP reporters. It was a ridiculously broad collection of data. The records were obtained last year, and the AP was only notified last Friday. Attorney General Eric Holder almost certainly personally signed off on the request. As it’s a media scandal, the media will be vigilant in following it. The ACLU and the AP have registered complaints with the Justice Department.The real scandal is, it was probably all legal.

Here’s what complicates this one: Almost no one in Congress actually supports placing limits on the government’s spying powers. It would be hard for Republican senators to make the case that the law has been violated, when the vast majority of them — all of them save perhaps Rand Paul — believe that the law allows federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies to do whatever it takes to Keep Us Safe.

The other problem Republicans face when attempting to use this scandal to impeach the president is that Republicans demanded the leak investigations that led to the U.S. Attorney obtaining the phone logs. Republicans spent months last year attacking the administration for leaks. They claimed that Obama was purposefully leaking sensitive, national security-endangering information to journalists, in an attempt to have more stories printed showing how tough on terror his administration was

In fact, this particular inquiry started when a bunch of Republican members of Congress started demanding a special prosecutor to investigate the leak that led to this scandal. So, it will be hard (but not impossible!) for Republicans to act hugely upset and offended about this one. Even if journalists freak out about it.

-snip-

http://www.salon.com/2013/05/14/which_obama_scandal_will_inevitably_lead_to_his_impeachment/

[fishwax]

4. rather, someone released classified information to the AP

It's the leak that will likely lbe prosecuted (if found)--not the press report.

[uponit7771]

5. AP headline is false, there's no "secret" anything towards them. AP = Winger Apologist