expat_panama
Gold Member
- Apr 12, 2011
- 3,864
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from: Did Obama Surveil Trump? Sure Looks That Way
Editorial 7:05 PM ET
Background info:
This is what Trump said:
This is what the wire tap law says:
Editorial 7:05 PM ET
Domestic Spying: Rep. Devin Nunes, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, says that the Obama administration surveilled Donald Trump's transition aides and possibly Trump himself following November's election. If true, it warrants a major investigation.
"I recently confirmed that on numerous occasions the intelligence community ... collected information about U.S. citizens involved in the Trump transition," ...
...the leaks of former Trump National Security Adviser Michael Flynn's conversations in late December with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak. Those talks have been treated as sinister, with the Washington Post even suggesting that they were a violation of the Logan Act, a possible serious crime.
But U.S. intelligence gatherers could quite easily get an "incidental" trove of material on Flynn, simply by getting a surveillance warrant on someone they knew he was likely to talk to...
...this appears to be a pattern of surveillance put in place by the Obama administration...
...Trump's calls with foreign leaders have likewise been leaked. By whom? For what purpose? This is clearly illegal behavior, and calls into question the reliability and loyalty of the entire intelligence community. Why are the Democrats not furious at this, as they would be if it were one of their own who was targeted?...
...it warrants a deep investigation. Who in the federal government was collecting information on Trump's aides and why? Was it for political reasons? Or part of a plan to undercut his presidency from the very beginning? Why haven't the leaks been stopped?
No one right now has all the answers. But the pattern suggests a surveillance program that would be a far more serious breach of the law than Watergate ever was. It's time the American people found out.
"I recently confirmed that on numerous occasions the intelligence community ... collected information about U.S. citizens involved in the Trump transition," ...
...the leaks of former Trump National Security Adviser Michael Flynn's conversations in late December with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak. Those talks have been treated as sinister, with the Washington Post even suggesting that they were a violation of the Logan Act, a possible serious crime.
But U.S. intelligence gatherers could quite easily get an "incidental" trove of material on Flynn, simply by getting a surveillance warrant on someone they knew he was likely to talk to...
...this appears to be a pattern of surveillance put in place by the Obama administration...
...Trump's calls with foreign leaders have likewise been leaked. By whom? For what purpose? This is clearly illegal behavior, and calls into question the reliability and loyalty of the entire intelligence community. Why are the Democrats not furious at this, as they would be if it were one of their own who was targeted?...
...it warrants a deep investigation. Who in the federal government was collecting information on Trump's aides and why? Was it for political reasons? Or part of a plan to undercut his presidency from the very beginning? Why haven't the leaks been stopped?
No one right now has all the answers. But the pattern suggests a surveillance program that would be a far more serious breach of the law than Watergate ever was. It's time the American people found out.
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Background info:
This is what Trump said:
This is what the wire tap law says:
The "Wiretap Act" (the "Act") is a federal law that is aimed at protecting your privacy in your communications with other persons. Typically, when you think of a "wiretap," the first thing that comes to mind is someone listening to your telephone calls. But, the Act protects more than that.
Under the Act, it is illegal to:
Under the Act, it is illegal to:
- Intentionally, or purposefully,
- Intercept, disclose, or use the contents of
- Any wire, oral, or electronic communication
- Through the use of a "device"... ... that is, some mechanical or electrical tool or apparatus, such as a tape recorder.
