Kennedy admits Bush NSA "legal"

NSA Wiretap Legal Debate Narrows
Fox News

"When the president goes around and speaks ... and says we're monitoring calls from overseas from Al Qaeda to the United States, the NSA can go ahead and do that now under the law," Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., said after the Senate Judiciary confirmation hearing of Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito.

Okay... that's exactly what he says he's doing. So why much ado about nothing? Because it's all politics and smear campaigning, folks. No surprise there.

However, has any of these "dem-witted" elitists thought even for a second that, to prove the NSA activity is within legal bounds, it requires they expose the particulars of who has been monitored, thus negating the effectiveness of the program? Of course not... because their primary agenda is a quest for power, and not intel for potential terrorist attacks. And as a citizen, I personally think their priorities are sorely misplaced.

According to legal experts, hypothetically, if the NSA had intercepted calls from alleged terrorists such as Khalid Sheikh Mohammed or Ramzi Binalshibb, both now in custody, while they were abroad, then U.S. intelligence agents could listen to the calls without a warrant. That goes for phone calls with people on the other end of the line who happen to be in United States.

Only when the person inside the United States becomes the target of surveillance is a warrant from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance court required.

"You wouldn't need a warrant to do the initial interception, but afterwards, once you're targeting the American citizen, then you need that warrant," said Bruce Fein, a former official in the Reagan Justice Department and a fierce critic of the Bush' administration's terror surveillance.

Other experts agree that a warrant is not needed until the U.S.-based individual becomes a suspect.

"If ... you are not targeting the person in the United States, you get the conversations, you are perfectly free to use those, that information provide it to other government agencies, if you want," said Bryan Cunningham, a former official with the Bush National Security Council.

Bingo... that has been obvious to most of us with a reading ability over 8th grade. I wish the MSM and liberal attack machine would just get over it. They are wearing my patience oh so thin.