Feinstein: "Totally Opposed" to spying on world leaders, wants "total review" of intel programs

[BluegrassStateBlues]

Senate Intelligence Chair Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) said Monday that she is "totally opposed" to surveilling allied leaders, amid reports that the National Security Agency has been monitoring German Chancellor Angela Merkel and other U.S. allies.

The revelations require a "total review of intelligence programs," Feinstein said in a statement.

“Unlike NSA’s collection of phone records under a court order, it is clear to me that certain surveillance activities have been in effect for more than a decade and that the Senate Intelligence Committee was not satisfactorily informed," she said. "Therefore our oversight needs to be strengthened and increased."

Feinstein added that it was "a big problem" that President Obama was not aware of the surveillance. The administration has assured Feinstein that the surveillance would not continue, she said.

“Unless the United States is engaged in hostilities against a country or there is an emergency need for this type of surveillance, I do not believe the United States should be collecting phone calls or emails of friendly presidents and prime ministers. The president should be required to approve any collection of this sort."

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/feinstein-i-am-totally-opposed-to-surveilling-foreign-leaders

[SamYeager]

1. When you've lost Feinstein in Intel, Intel has been caught with their pants down n/t

[BluegrassStateBlues]

2. LOL, pretty much. Heads will roll now. nt

[bemildred]

5. Yep, that's the other shoe. nt

[nadinbrzezinski]

3. Feinstein....wow, just wow!

Now you know they over reached

[TDale313]

4. Perhaps it finally occurred to her

That the NSA was likely spying on veryimportantpeople like, oh I don't know, Senators and Congresscritters and their spouses and not just us peons?

[nadinbrzezinski]

6. You mean like Russ Tice alleged a few years ago?

Yup

[Uncle Joe]

22. One would think after the NSA's phone tapping of Senators Frank Church and Howard Baker

in the late 60s and early 70s they would have known this.

There could no national security reason for doing this but for political black mail purposes.

This same will take place with the meta data collection of us peons.

[TDale313]

23. Yeah, I have the sneaking suspicion...

That very little of this is about keeping us safe. It's about political power and it's about a national security apparatus that's making some people a hell of a lot of money.

[DURHAM D]

7. They won't get full disclosure unless Poppy Bush gives the go ahead. nt

[AnotherMcIntosh]

8. If her test for spying depends upon whether the US is engaged in hostilities, why have NSA funds

been authorized by her and her Senate Committee while knowing that the NSA would used such funds to spy upon us?

Does she and her fellow Senators on her Committee perceive that the United States is engaging in hostiliities towards us? Is this what justifies such expenditures?

[Rex]

9. I agree senator, no more Kabuki theater!

It doesn't make for good PR.

[geek tragedy]

10. Holy crap, they managed to piss off DiFi! nt

[Rex]

17. Not a smart move!

She will make them eat their lunch money, in front of her!

[Mass]

11. It is not OK to spy on the rich and powerful. The rest of us, who cares!

[mike_c]

12. but she LOVES spying on the other 99%....

Just keep the NSA's mits of the ruling class.

[Hekate]

13. This is BFEE all the way

as I said in another thread.

And yes, when DiFi wakes up, you've gone way too far. I believe the consolidated intelligence systems were set to run on autopilot (why Obama really didn't know -- his opinion and input were not deemed important, right?).

My other post. I'm really furious.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=633743

[sabrina 1]

14. She's on the Intel Committee, is she saying they had no clue what the NSA was up to?

Did she talk to Clapper at all?

Ron Wyden was trying to warn them for several years. Why didn't she release him from the gag order they are all under? She never asked questions, just 'trusted' a Republican to do the right thing. Well he did do the 'Right' thing as could be expected.

Sounds more like it is the world wide repercussions she is trying to handle rather than the spying.

As for the 'allies' they were spying on, some of them deserve it for the way they treated truth tellers on behalf of the US. Now maybe they have learned that being puppets hoping for 'special relationships' with a Major Super Power wasn't such a good idea after all.

[Rex]

18. If not for ONE improv by a Congress critter, we would never know any of this!

THAT should be what worries voters...that the NSA was monitoring Congress and not the other way around!

[sabrina 1]

19. Good point, 'the NSA was monitoring Congress instead of the other way around'.

If that turns out to be true, that is a serious problem.

[Rex]

20. I think Congress got caught sleeping at the wheel.

If you give no oversight, then expect not to be informed about anything of real importance imo. We de-regulate the markets and D.C. and THIS is what we end up with. Kabuki theater in Congress.

[Oilwellian]

24. Grayson called them out

Congressional oversight of the NSA is a joke. I should know, I'm in Congress.

I've learned far more about government spying on citizens from the media than I have from official intelligence briefings.

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/oct/25/nsa-no-congress-oversight

[fredamae]

15. My first thought

was this so epitomizes the depth of own their intentional ignorance...She Supports having the peasants monitored.

Why do we allow them to continue holding Us to a much higher standard of law than they are willing to hold themselves?

This arrogance is rampant in both parties.

[Luminous Animal]

16. Isn't that special. Spy on the peons

But leave Merkel alone.....

[rhett o rick]

21. Diane Frankenstein is not a friend of the 99%. She is a Democrat but doesnt give a crap

if the NSA is spying on us. When she finds out they are spying on the elite, she has a fit. She needs to be primaried.

[markpkessinger]

25. +1000! n/t

[woo me with science]

26. +2000

[kentuck]

27. The Hen Guarding the Fox Hole.

She can't make up her mind. They have no idea what the NSA is doing. A total bunch of incompetents.

[GoneFishin]

28. I don't buy it. Thom Hartman has been speaking about her writing a bill with an Orwellian title

purporting to rein the spying in, while actually granting new spying powers in the fine print.

She has already shown who she is. Believe her.