We have previously discussed how Barack Obama has become the president that Richard Nixon always wanted to be. From his Administration’s comprehensive attack on privacy and civil liberties, investigation of journalists, to his claim of unilateral authority to kill citizens, Obama has created an Imperial Presidency that could haunt this nation for generations. He has succeeded with the silent acquiescence of many liberals and Democrats who have embraced personality over principle in continuing to support his Administration. Now, a new report documents how the National Security Agency under Obama has been gathering records of online sexual activity and evidence of visits to pornographic websites to be used as part of a proposed plan to harm the reputations of people consider radicals. The obvious comparison to Nixon is only dwarfed by the comparison to J. Edgar Hoover, but again the silence is deafening from the Democrats. In the meantime, the so-called “reforms” of the NSA as expected would preserve the massive data-gathering programs of the agency — as guaranteed by such “reformers” as Dianne Feinstein.
Among the targets is at least one person identified as a “U.S. person.”
The program reportedly has already targeted six Muslims deemed radical and subject to such “personal vulnerabilities.” The published NSA document, dated Oct. 3, 2012, details the surveillance to gather dirt on enemies. When combined with the utter lack of congressional oversight and unchecked executive powers, such surveillance quickly becomes insatiable for intelligence officials who can destroy people by revealing embarrassing private details.
The NSA is gathering dirt such as “viewing sexually explicit material online” and “using sexually explicit persuasive language when communicating with inexperienced young girls.” Shawn Turner, director of public affairs for National Intelligence, responded to media requests with little more than a shrug, saying such activities “should not be surprising” since the “the US Government uses all of the lawful tools at our disposal” against people deemed enemies of the state. Of course, it is available at their disposal because of a President with what is increasing viewed as authoritarian appetites and a Congress that has no appetite to fight for abstract principles like privacy.
Bush officials are already applauding Obama for his Administration’s gathering of dirt on targeted individuals. Indeed, advocates of the program are now citing the controversial claim of the President to kill people on his sole authority as a rationale for this new controversial system under a lesser evil rationale. Stewart Baker, former general counsel for the NSA in the Bush administration and someone viewed as a nemesis to civil liberties by many, insisted that “On the whole, it’s fairer and maybe more humane” than vaporizing them.
The published documents refer to one target as attracting the NSA’s ire by arguing that “Non-Muslims are a threat to Islam” and then identified his vulnerability as “online promiscuity.” Another academic dared to write in support of the concept of “offensive jihad” and so the NSA targeted him for his “online promiscuity” and “publishes articles without checking facts.”
Of course, with the rest of the unchecked powers secured by Obama with the support or acquiescence of Democrats and many liberals will be handed over to the next president . . whoever that may be.
But…. Benghazi!!!!!!…. Benghazi!!!!!!…. Benghazi!!!!!……
Obama apparently believes that viewing porn is more heinous than murdering babies! #glasshouse #stone #loginyoureye
Justin Amash tweet:
Now 102 House cosponsors (51 Rs, 51 Ds) for FreedomAct. … Pressure builds on Boehner for NSA vote
November 30, 2013, 06:30 am
Pressure builds on Boehner for NSA vote
By Brendan Sasso
http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/191536-boehner-under-pressure-on-nsa-reforms?utm_campaign=HilliconValley&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
NSA SEXINT is the Abuse You’ve All Been Waiting For
By Jennifer Granick
Friday, November 29, 2013 at 12:08 PM
http://justsecurity.org/2013/11/29/nsa-sexint-abuse-youve-waiting/
Excerpt:
Julian Sanchez at the Cato Institute points out another historical examples of actual and threatened blackmail:
“[FBI Director J. Edgar] Hoover’s right hand Cartha DeLoach proudly reported that the Bureau had learned of a truculent senator caught driving drunk with a “good looking broad.” The senator, DeLoach explained, was promptly made “aware that we had the information, and we never had trouble with him on appropriations since.””
These practices were disgusting, dangerous and abusive then, just as they are now. What’s new is that, in a mass surveillance ecosystem, the scale and scope on which this kind of activity can take place is unprecedented. Once it collects information about hundreds of millions of people in mass, “dossiers” of potentially embarrassing information—or blackmail quality secrets—dirt on anyone is just a few searches away. Intelligence operatives can secretly tar anyone, seemingly at will, since the NSA has the technological capacity, and no one has identified a law which would, if followed, intercede. These abilities, never mind the will to use them, are incompatible with individual freedom and democracy.