Okay, I'm getting confused here. You've got Democrats who supervised (or were briefed) for three, four years on this program, every six weeks. And not a one of them called for the program to be terminated. Only two letters (according to this post) have even been produced expressing reservations, and one of those supposedly endorsed the White House view that the only authorization needed was the President's.
It seems like the program was operated under some pretty stringent rules and conditions, and those conditions weren't violated. Call me dim and stupid, but I'm really not seeing the harm here.
Captain's Quarters - Buyer's RemorseSo, again, I'm not seeing a problem with this, from a civil liberties viewpoint or otherwise.The Times report has been specific about the kinds of communications captured and shared by the NSA under the program, reporting that the communications involved at least one end being outside the United States and involving people who have been linked to al-Qaeda or other recognized terrorist organizations by another source. Once that information came through, NSA has shared the data with other intelligence and law-enforcement agencies such as the DIA and the FBI -- just like the 9/11 Commission and Congressional reviews of 9/11 scolded the intelligence services for not doing prior to the devastating attacks. Not one of the people who have been briefed on this program for the last four years has reported or suggested even once that the program deviated from those very limited parameters, and even the Times reported that the NSA sought warrants on anything else.
J.