U.S. Intelligence Officials Suggest White House Knew Of Foreign Leader Bugging (Updated)

Amid Outcry Over European Spying, U.S. Agencies Suggest White House Knew Of Foreign Leader Bugging -- Sacramento Bee/McClatchy News

WASHINGTON -- Senior U.S. intelligence officials on Tuesday staunchly defended the National Security Agency, all but confirming that the White House knew about the tapping of foreign leaders’ telephones, denying that millions of European citizens’ telephone data were swept up and asserting that the European allies assist the NSA even as they spy on U.S. officials.

“We only do what the policy-makers writ large have asked us to do,” Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said at a House Intelligence Committee hearing.

The hearing came amid a growing outcry at home and in Europe over disclosures of some of the NSA’s most secret communications collection programs in documents leaked to news media by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden. They included the tapping of telephones of 35 world leaders, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

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Previous Post: Contradicting The President, U.S. Intelligence Officials Are Adament That the White House Approved Spying Ops On Foreign Leaders

More News On U.S. Intelligence Officials Asserting That The White House Approved of Spying Measures

Officials Say White House Knew of Spying -- New York Times
Did White House Approve Surveillance on Merkel? -- Tom Risen, US News and World Report
The Switchboard: White House approved of spying on world leaders, report says -- Washington Post
President Obama’s ‘I don’t know’ strategy — and its limits -- Chris Cillizza, Washington Post
White House and Congress Didn't Know the NSA Was Spying on Allies? I Doubt It -- Jack Goldsmith, The New Republic

My Comment: The above video of the Director of National Intelligence James Clapper explaining what the White House may have known (or not) deserves a laugh. In my little world .... if the agency that I am running is spying on 35 foreign leaders .... I would take the time (at least a few minutes) to inform the President of the United States of what I am doing.