Those of us sigh doubtfully or look incredulous when someone says "I never thought the administration would lie to us" are giving ourselves serious pats on the back this morning when we read the revelation that [oh golly what a surprise] the Justice Department misused those "Patriot" Act "National Security" Letters. We doubters have been putting those scornful quotation marks around much of what the administration has done from the get-go. Okay, you're right: "the administration."
The Justice Department’s inspector general has prepared a scathing report criticizing how the F.B.I. uses a form of administrative subpoena to obtain thousands of telephone, business and financial records without prior judicial approval. The report, expected to be issued on Friday ["dump 'em when no one's paying attention" day], says that the bureau lacks sufficient controls to make sure the subpoenas, which do not require a judge’s prior approval, are properly issued and that it does not follow even some of the rules it does have.
Maybe there'll be calls to impeach Gonzales. Wouldn't surprise me. The Senate must be hopping mad.
The report is said to conclude that the program lacks effective management, monitoring and reporting procedures, officials who have been briefed on its contents said. Details of the report emerged on Thursday as Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales and other officials struggled to tamp down a Congressional uproar over another issue, the ousters of eight United States attorneys.
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More on the evolution of National Security Letters here:
Say, have you "written and promoted opinions that are contrary to the government of the USA"?
Sy Hersh demonstrates that NSA wiretapping went way beyond what's been admitted so far
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