The National Security Agency (NSA) continues to conduct warrantless wiretapping of U.S. citizens at a frenetic pace, according to informed NSA sources.
Much of the surveillance of American citizens and legal residents, known as “U.S. persons” in the NSA eavesdropping lexicon, is now being conducted under the aegis of the U.S. Cyber Command. NSA director General Keith Alexander doubles as the commander of the Cyber Command. Both agencies’ headquarters are located at Fort Meade, Maryland.
Warrantless wiretapping began during the George W. Bush administration in the wake of 9/11. The program was authorized by Vice President Dick Cheney’s chief counsel David Addington and was never known as the so-called “Terrorist Surveillance Program,” or “TSP.” The Terrorist Surveillance Program moniker was a cover story developed by NSA, Justice Department, and White House officials to mask the true targets of the warrantless eavesdropping operation: U.S. citizens on U.S. soil. Primary targets include journalists, their government sources, and political office holders and other government officials. The latter includes members of Congress, state governors, senior military officers, U.S. diplomats, and Cabinet officers. Some of the intercepted communications of Americans was entered into an NSA database known as PINWALE.
WMR has learned that although NSA’s acting general counsel Vito Potenza and NSA Inspector General Joel Brenner claimed they were not given access to “The Program’s” key implementing documents, both individuals had worked with Addington and other members of the Bush White House, including chief of staff Andrew Card, to implement massive NSA spying on U.S. citizens. The two NSA lawyers worked closely with Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel attorney John Yoo to craft the illegal program. Yoo’s actions were approved by Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.
At NSA, the warrantless eavesdropping program is simply known as “The Program.” The classified code word for “The Program” was STELLAR WIND before the code phrase was leaked to the media. The Bush administration used “The Program” to gain intelligence on its political enemies and friends, alike. The Obama administration maintains “The Program” to similarly engage in political surveillance within the United States.
