Wyden's former deputy chief of staff doubts Clapper decided to lie unilaterally.

[Waiting For Everyman]

23. Everybody should read that entire article.

First thing, Congress needs to be un-muzzled, beginning with the dissenting members of the Intelligence Committees. DiFi needs to GO, as chairman of Senate Intel. She has one hell of a lot of nerve. Apparently she has kept an iron grip on the dissenters, preventing them from communicating much of anything to anybody.

Wyden's Communications Director wrote this:

"...during my tenure in Wyden's office, I probably spent in upwards of 1,000 hours trying to help my boss raise concerns about programs that he couldn't even tell me about. (italics in original)

He is barred from telling his own staff what his concerns are, whose job it is to communicate with the public; he is likewise barred from telling his colleagues in the Senate what his concerns are... meaning not only is there zero debate -- he can't even bring the subject up in the Senate, on the floor or privately. This is preposterous!

And yet Obama had the colossal nerve to actually say this:

"What makes us different from other countries is not simply our ability to secure our nation," Obama said. "It's the way we do it, with open debate and democratic process."

What absolute BULLSHIT, Mister President! How dare you! If he tried all day to do it on purpose, he couldn't have come up with something more offensive to say!