-Caveat Lector-
Begin forwarded message:
From: "Mario Profaca" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Date: January 15, 2007 12:51:56 AM PST
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: [SPY NEWS] Cheney Defends Spying On Bank Records
Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/01/13/terror/main2358881.shtml
Cheney Defends Spying On Bank Records
VP Calls Defense Dept. and CIA Secret Access To Americans' Bank
Records "Legitimate"
Jan. 13, 2007
(CBS/AP) Vice President Dick Cheney said Sunday that the Pentagon and
CIA are not violating people's rights by examining the banking and
credit records of hundreds of Americans and others suspected of
terrorism or espionage in the United States.
But Rep. Silvestre Reyes, the new Democratic chairman of the House
Intelligence Committee, said his panel will be the judge of that.
The military and the CIA have been using a little-known power to get
the banking records of hundreds of Americans and others in the United
States suspected of terrorism, the New York Times first reported on
Saturday.
Citing anonymous intelligence officials, the Times said that the
Pentagon and the CIA have been issuing "national security letters" to
financial institutions to gain access to bank records.
National security letters permit the executive branch to seek records
about people in terrorism and spy investigations without a judge's
approval or grand jury subpoena.
"The Department of Defense has legitimate authority in this area. This
is an authority that goes back three or four decades. It was
reaffirmed in the Patriot Act," Cheney said. "It's perfectly
legitimate activity. There's nothing wrong with it or illegal. It
doesn't violate people's civil rights."
"The Defense Department gets involved because we've got hundreds of
bases inside the United States that are potential terrorist targets,"
he said on Fox News Sunday.
In a statement Sunday, Reyes promised that his panel would take a
careful look at those claims.
"Any expansion by the department into intelligence collection,
particularly on U.S. soil, is something our committee will thorough
review," Reyes said.
"We want our intelligence professionals to have strong tools that will
enable them to interrupt the planning process of our enemies and to
stop attacks against our country," he said. "But in doing so, we also
want those tools to comply fully with the law and the Constitution."
The Federal Bureau of Investigation, which is the U.S. agency
designated for domestic counterterrorism activities, has issued
thousands of national security letters, or NSLs, which compel
companies or individuals to turn over information. The FBI does not
need a warrant to obtain information if they issue a NSL.
The letters have generated criticism and court challenges from civil
liberties advocates who claim they invade the privacy of Americans'
lives, even though banks and other financial institutions typically
turn over the financial records voluntarily.
The Pentagon and CIA versions of the NSLs are "noncompulsory,"
according to the Times report, but companies receiving the letters
usually turn over the requested information voluntarily.
In 2005, the FBI used NSLs to secretly seek information on 3,501 U.S.
citizens and legal residents from their banks, credit card, telephone
and Internet companies without a court's approval, according to the
Justice Department.
The FBI delivered a total of 9,254 NSLs relating to 3,501 people that
year, according to a report submitted in April, 2006 to Democratic and
Republican leaders in the House and Senate. In some cases, the bureau
demanded information about one person from several companies.
The Pentagon and the CIA are forbidden from traditional law
enforcement roles in the United States. The Bush administration has
tried since September 11, 2001 to expand the domestic surveillance
powers of both agencies.
Congressional officials told the Times that members of the House and
Senate Intelligence Committees had been briefed on the expanded use of
the letters.
The letters "provide tremendous leads to follow and often with which
to corroborate other evidence in the context of counterespionage and
counterterrorism," said Maj. Patrick Ryder, a Pentagon spokesman, told
the Times.
CIA officials told the Times that the agency issues a handful of
national security letters each year.
© MMVII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.
-__ ___ _ ___ __ ___ _ _ _ __
/-_|-0-\-V-/-\|-|-__|-|-|-/-_|
\_-\--_/\-/|-\\-|-_||-V-V-\_-\
|__/_|--//-|_|\_|___|\_A_/|__/
SPY NEWS is OSINT newsletter and discussion list associated to
Mario's Cyberspace Station - The Global Intelligence News Portal
http://mprofaca.cro.net
Since you are receiving and reading documents, news stories,
comments and opinions not only from so called (or self-proclaimed)
"reliable sources", but also a lot of possible misinformation
collected
by Spy News moderator and subscribers and posted to Spy News
for OSINT purposes - it should be a serious reason (particularly to
journalists and web publishers) to think twice before using it for
their
story writing, further publishing or forwarding throughout Cyberspace.
To unsubscribe:
mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
*** FAIR USE NOTICE: This message contains copyrighted material
whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright
owner. Spy News is making it available without profit to SPY NEWS
members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the
included information in their efforts to advance the understanding
of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their
activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties and
other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and
educational purposes only. We always mention the author and link
the original site and page of every article. We believe that this
constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided
for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use
this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond
'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
For more information go to:
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml
SPY NEWS home page:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/spynews
Mario Profaca
http://mprofaca.cro.net/profaca.html
e-mail: mario.profaca[at]zg.t-com.hr
SPY NEWS owner & editor
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/spynews/
<*> Your email settings:
Individual Email | Traditional
<*> To change settings online go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/spynews/join
(Yahoo! ID required)
<*> To change settings via email:
mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
www.ctrl.org
DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER
==========
CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic
screeds are unwelcomed. Substanceânot soap-boxingâplease! These are
sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'âwith its many half-truths, mis-
directions and outright fraudsâis used politically by different groups with
major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought.
That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and
always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no
credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply.
Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector.
========================================================================
Archives Available at:
http://www.mail-archive.com/ctrl@listserv.aol.com/
<A HREF="http://www.mail-archive.com/ctrl@listserv.aol.com/";>ctrl</A>
========================================================================
To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email:
SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED]
To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email:
SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Om
