Al Gore calls Obama administration’s collection of phone records ‘obscenely outrageous’

[cascadiance]

109. This is interesting in light of Al Gore being an ardent defender of the "clipper" encryption chip...

... that was earlier made with a "backdoor" for the government to break the encryption and be able to spy on data going through encrypted communications through this chip. I recall a quote from him way back when (when the telecomm bill and telecommunications decency act was passed) that said something to the effect that "if you knew what I know of things going on" as a rationale to allow for government to spy on us then.

I wonder in context of his comments today, what he feels has changed, or if he feels that what is going on is far more intrusive and worse than what they were trying to do then.

Wish I could find the earlier quote I remember seeing at the time way back then. It seemed like only a few senators including Feingold, McCain, and Pat Leahy were standing up against the problematic parts of the telecomm act and this legislation then.