Americans’ telephone records are legal and a valuable part of the nation’s arsenal to counter the threat of terrorism. This was according to U.S. District Judge William H. Pauley III. NSA Phone surveillance is legal in order to continue to eliminate al-Qaida’s terror network by connecting fragmented and fleeting communications. It has been theorized that the phone data-collection system can help investigators connect the dots before terrorist attacks occur.
“There are exigent circumstances here,” Klayman said. “We can’t allow this situation to continue. The NSA’s continuing to spy on everybody.”
Turner said U.S. intelligence agencies would be willing to modify the phone records surveillance program to provide additional privacy and civil liberties protections as long as it was still operationally beneficial. He said the Obama administration was carefully evaluating the advisory panel’s recent recommendations.
U.S. District Judge William H. Pauley III concluded the program was a necessary extension of steps taken after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
“This blunt tool only works because it collects everything,” Pauley said. “The collection is broad, but the scope of counterterrorism investigations is unprecedented.”
The conflicting rulings could set the stage for a Supreme Court battle over the NSA. What are your thoughts on the taboo phone surveillance be rendered legal?
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