Sunday, 12 July 2009

NYT: Cheney linked to hiding CIA project

NYT: Cheney linked to hiding CIA project

Former vice president told agency to hide it from Congress, 2 sources say



The Central Intelligence Agency withheld information about a secret counterterrorism program from Congress for eight years on direct orders from former Vice President Dick Cheney, the agency’s director, Leon E. Panetta, has told the Senate and House intelligence committees, two people with direct knowledge of the matter said Saturday.

The report that Mr. Cheney was behind the decision to conceal the still-unidentified program from Congress deepened the mystery surrounding it, suggesting that the Bush administration had put a high priority on the program and its secrecy.

Mr. Panetta, who ended the program when he first learned of its existence from subordinates on June 23, briefed the two intelligence committees about it in separate closed sessions the next day.

thinkprogress

A congressionally-mandated report by Inspectors General of five separate intelligence agencies confirms that the Bush administration carried out “unprecedented,” massive surveillance activities beyond the warrantless wirteapping program that had previously been revealed. The Bush administration authorized the program without fully notifying Congress:

Rep. Jane Harman, D-Calif., told The Associated Press she was shocked to learn of the existence of other classified programs beyond the warrantless wiretapping.

Former Bush Attorney General Alberto Gonzales made a terse reference to other classified programs in an August 2007 letter to Congress. But Harman said that when she had asked Gonzales two years earlier if the government was conducting any other undisclosed intelligence activities, he denied it.

“He looked me in the eye and said ‘no,’” she said Friday.

As ThinkProgress previously reported, former Deputy Attorney General James Comey’s testimony before Congress implied that “other programs exist for domestic spying” outside of the NSA program. Gonzales even stated in 2007 that “other intelligence activities” existed. The new report found Gonzales’ statements to be “incomplete and confusing” and “inaccurate,” though not intentionally misleading.

Attorney General John Ashcroft had originally given authorization for the program based on a “misimpression” of what activities the NSA was actually conducting. The lack of full disclosure led to the showdown in Ashcroft’s hospital room in 2004, which almost caused a mass resignation at DoJ.

According to the report, top Cheney aide David Addington could personally decide who in the administration was “read into” the classified program. The inspectors general interviewed more than 200 people inside and outside the government. But because the inspectors general “lacked the authority to compel testimony,” five former Bush administration officials — Ashcroft, John Yoo, George Tenet, Andrew Card, and Addington — refused to be questioned.

Most of the intelligence leads generated under what was known as the “President’s Surveillance Program,” which began shortly after 9/11, did not have any connection to terrorism, the report said. Moreover, the information produced was of “limited” value to intelligence officials.

White the IGs’ report does not yield any details about the secret programs, Radar reported in 2008 that a program called “Main Core” was engaged in massive data collection of Americans:

According to a senior government official… ”There exists a database of Americans, who, often for the slightest and most trivial reason, are considered unfriendly, and who, in a time of panic, might be incarcerated. The database can identify and locate perceived ‘enemies of the state’ almost instantaneously.” … One knowledgeable source claims that 8 million Americans are now listed in Main Core as potentially suspect. In the event of a national emergency, these people could be subject to everything from heightened surveillance and tracking to direct questioning and possibly even detention.

Glenn Greenwald notes that there likely “will be no consequences” for any of this “rampant and blantant” lawlessness because the Obama administration “opposes all Congressional investigations into Bush-era crimes and, worse, is engaged in extraordinary efforts to block courts from adjudicating the legality of Bush’s surveillance activities by claiming that even long-obsolete and clearly criminal programs are ’state secrets.’”

UpdateJack Balkin writes, "In sum: the Bush Administration used an illegal program that wasn't effective, and when the public found out, it repeatedly used this ineffective program to scare Congress into passing laws that legitimated many of its illegal practices and gave the intelligence agencies greater leeway with less oversight."
UpdateSpencer Ackerman questions: "Does the legal architecture of the original [surveillance program] still remain in place? I suppose if it does, one vehicle for calling attention to it — and perhaps doing something about it — is the debate over reauthorizing sections of the Patriot Act that will take place later this year."
UpdateIn an interview with the AP, former CIA Director Michael Hayden claimed that top members of Congress were kept well-informed all along the way. "One of the points I had in every one of the briefings was to make sure they understood the scope of our activity 'They've got to know this is bigger than a bread box,' I said," said Hayden.
pacificviews.org

TPMMuckraker asks Was Bush Kept In The Dark On DOJ Concerns About Surveillance?

One passage on the IGs report on surveillance suggests something that perhaps shouldn't come as a surprise -- that President Bush was kept in the dark by members of the White House staff about about serious objections to the surveillance program raised by others in the administration.

Washington Post:Democrats Eye Secret Program

House plans probe of CIA effort that Bush-era officials kept from Congress for almost eight years.

Paul Kane and Joby Warrick

Washington Post: Holder Weighs Inquiry Into Alleged Torture

Attorney general may appoint a prosecutor to investigate CIA treatment of terrorism suspects, despite resistance from administration.

Carrie Johnson

Cheney linked to secrecy of CIA program

By Greg Miller
At the direction of the then-vice president, Congress was not notified of a highly classified counter-terrorism program for eight years, sources say.

  • Former Vice President Dick Cheney directed the CIA eight years ago not to inform Congress about a nascent counterterrorism program that CIA Director Leon Panetta terminated in June, officials with direct knowledge of the matter said Saturday.
    AP via Yahoo! News - 1 hour, 8 minutes ago
  • The CIA withheld information about a secret counterterrorism program from Congress during the Bush administration on direct orders from then-Vice President Dick Cheney, current CIA director Leon Panetta told members of Congress, a knowledgeable source confirmed to CNN.
    CNN - Jul 11 11:14 PM
  • US former vice president Dick Cheney ordered the CIA to withhold information about a secret counterterrorism program from Congress for eight years, The New York Times reported on its website Saturday.
    AFP via Yahoo! News - Jul 11 4:36 PM
  • Government sources say Vice President Dick Cheney directed the CIA not to inform Congress about a nascent counterterrorism program eight years ago that CIA Director Leon Panetta terminated in June.
    AP via Yahoo! News - Jul 11 4:58 PM
  • The CIA withheld information about a secret counter-terrorism program from Congress for eight years on orders from former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney, the New York Times said on Saturday.
    Reuters via Yahoo! News - Jul 11 3:44 PM
  • The Central Intelligence Agency withheld information about a secret counterterrorism program from Congress for eight years on direct orders from former Vice President Dick Cheney, the agency's director, Leon Panetta, has told the Senate and House intelligence committees, two people with direct knowledge of the matter said Saturday.
    St. Louis Post-Dispatch - 46 minutes ago
  • The Central Intelligence Agency withheld information about a secret counterterrorism program from Congress for eight years on direct orders from former Vice President Dick Cheney.
    Denver Post - 2 hours, 55 minutes ago
  • At the direction of the then-vice president, Congress was not notified of a highly classified counter-terrorism program for eight years, sources say. The CIA kept a highly classified counter-terrorism program secret from Congress for eight years at the direction of then-Vice President Dick Cheney, according to sources familiar with an account that agency Director Leon E. Panetta provided ...
    Chicago Tribune - Jul 11 6:51 PM
  • Government officials say former VP Cheney told the CIA to keep Congress in dark over counter-terror program • Hayden: Secret CIA Program Had Congress' Support
    Fox News - Jul 11 4:54 PM
  • Top Bush administration officials, including former CIA Director George J. Tenet and former Vice President Dick Cheney, opted not to brief Congress on a secret program belatedly disclosed to Congress last month by CIA Director Leon E. Panetta, according to an intelligence official with direct knowledge of the program. The official, who asked not to be named because of the classified nature of ...
    The Washington Times - 48 minutes ago

  • WASHINGTON, July 11 (UPI) -- The CIA kept Congress in the dark for eight years about a secret counter-terrorism program on orders from former Vice President Dick Cheney, sources said.
    UPI - Jul 11 4:12 PM
  • Government officials with direct knowledge of Panetta's June 24 briefing to congressional intelligence committees confirmed that Cheney had told the CIA not to discuss the program with Congress yet.
    Fox News - Jul 11 4:51 PM
  • he Central Intelligence Agency withheld information about a secret counterterrorism program from Congress for eight years on direct orders from former Vice President Dick Cheney, the agency's director, Leon Panetta, has told the Senate and House intelligence committees, two people with knowledge of the matter said Saturday.
    Seattle Times - 2 hours, 58 minutes ago
  • CIA Director Leon Panetta reportedly has told Congress that his predecessor kept a counterterrorism program secret from Congress for eight years on orders of then-Vice President Dick Cheney.
    Market Watch - Jul 11 3:22 PM
  • Former Vice President Dick Cheney directed the CIA eight years ago not to inform Congress about a new counterterrorism program that CIA Director Leon Panetta terminated in June, officials with direct knowledge of the matter said Saturday.
    Japan Today - 2 hours, 1 minute ago
  • Former Vice President Dick Cheney directed the CIA eight years ago not to inform Congress about a nascent counterterrorism program, officials said today.
    Detroit Free Press - Jul 11 5:11 PM
  • Dick Cheney reportedly ordered the CIA to withhold information about a secret counter-terrorism program from Congress when he was US vice-president.
    Sky News Australia - Jul 11 10:07 PM
  • The Central Intelligence Agency withheld information about a secret counterterrorism program from Congress for eight years on direct orders from former Vice President Dick Cheney, the agency's director, Leon E. Panetta, has told the Senate and House intelligence committees, two people with direct knowledge of the matter said yesterday.
    Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - Jul 11 9:21 PM
  • The CIA kept a highly classified counter-terrorism program secret from Congress for eight years at the direction of former Vice President Dick Cheney, according to sources familiar with an account that agency Director Leon Panetta provided recently...
    The News Journal - 2 hours, 11 minutes ago
  • Former Vice President Dick Cheney ordered the CIA not to inform Congress about a secret counterterrorism program for eight years, according to...
    The Hill - Jul 11 8:50 PM






  • Former Vice President Dick Cheney directed the CIA eight years ago not to inform Congress about a nascent counterterrorism...
    Deseret News - Jul 11 6:12 PM
  • WASHINGTON, July 12 — The Central Intelligence Agency withheld information about a secret counterterrorism programme from Congress for eight years on direct orders from former US Vice-President Dick Cheney, the agency’s director, Leon E. Panetta, has told the Senate and House intelligence committees, two people with direct knowledge of the matter said yesterday. The report that Cheney was behind ...
    The Malaysian Insider - Jul 11 11:03 PM
  • FILE -- In this June 1, 2009 file photo, former Vice President Dick Cheney speaks at the National Press Club in Washington. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)
    The Huffington Post - Jul 11 9:41 PM
  • Citing two unidentified sources, the newspaper said Central Intelligence Agency Director Leon Panetta disclosed Cheney's involvement in closed briefings to congressional intelligence committees late last month.
    The Star - Jul 11 8:04 PM
  • DICK Cheney ordered the CIA to withhold information about a secret counter-terrorism program from Congress, it has been reported.
    Herald Sun - Jul 11 5:22 PM
  • Former Vice President Dick Cheney ordered the Central Intelligence Agency to withhold information about a secret counterterrorism program from Congress for eight years, the New York Times reported Saturday. Agency director Leon Panetta, who ended the program when he learned of its existence on June 23, briefed Senate and House intelligence committees about it in separate closed sessions the next ...
    CBS 13 Sacramento - Jul 11 8:34 PM
  • THE CIA withheld information about a secret counter-terrorism program from Congress for eight years on orders from former US Vice President Dick Cheney, the New York Times said today.
    The Courier Mail - Jul 11 3:47 PM
  • FORMER US Vice-President Dick Cheney ordered the CIA not to tell US Congress about a secret counter-terrorism program.
    Daily Telegraph - Jul 11 3:47 PM
  • Source: Reuters * Panetta disclosed Cheney's involvement to Congress * Program begin after Sept. 11 attacks - officials WASHINGTON, July 11 Reuters - The CIA withheld information about a secret counter- ...
    AlertNet - Jul 11 4:00 PM
  • Associated Press - July 11, 2009 7:23 PM ET WASHINGTON (AP) - Government sources say Vice President Dick Cheney directed the CIA not to inform Congress about a nascent counterterrorism program...
    KTNV Las Vegas - Jul 11 4:41 PM




  • A top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee says that the charge leveled on Saturday that then Vice President Dick Cheney ordered the concealment of an eight-year covert spy program from Congress offered validation for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).
    Politico via Yahoo! News - Jul 11 7:09 PM
  • Right now, it's just a conspiracy theory. I hope that's all it will ever be.
    Blogcritics.org - Jul 11 7:08 PM



  • Sources say Cheney directed that counterterrorism effort be kept secret from Congress The CIA kept a highly classified counterterrorism program secret from Congress for eight years at the direction of then-Vice President Dick Cheney, according to sources familiar with an account that agency director Leon Panetta provided recently to House and Senate committees.
    Baltimore Sun

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