Rancho La Luna

TODAY'S EPISODE OF

National Security Letters
Washington, District of Columbia (United States)
07/26/2007 AT 1:30pm EASTERN

STARRING

Conyers, John Jr. - U.S. Representative, D-MI

and

Mueller, Robert - Director, Federal Bureau of Investigation

C-SPAN3 LINK RIGHT CLICK, OPEN IN NEW WINDOW.

PREVIOUSLY
The House Judiciary Committee held an oversight hearing on the use of National Security Letters by Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Former Deputy Atty Gen James Comey told Senate Judiciary Committee that Pres Bush quelled revolt over legality of domestic eavesdropping program in March 2004 by allowing it to continue without Justice Department approval and directing department to bring it into compliance with law. Atty Gen John Ashcroft, FBI Dir Robert Mueller and other senior officials, James Comey, threatened to resign. Comey refused to sign the reauthorization and rushed to Ashcroft's hospital room to confront White House chief of staff Andrew Card and then-counsel Alberto Gonzales when they showed up to get Ashcroft to sign instead. Mueller told FBI agents not to eject Comey if Card and Gonzales objected. Comey described seriously ill Ashcroft rising from bed and, in strong and unequivocal terms, refusing to approve eavesdropping program. He recalls anger at effort to take advantage of very sick man who had transferred authority to Comey anyway. Comey says he got an angry call from Card and refused to see him without solicitor general Ted Olson as witness. Bush spoke with Comey and Mueller the next day and told them to amend program and make it legal.

WHY THIS MATTERS
This matters because it sheds more light on the infamous series of events leading up to the installation and legality of the NSA Wiretapping programs. This hearing may further push our understanding of why the program was so objectionable to Atty. Gen. John Ashcroft. I expect Robert will be asked to verify that he in fact threatened to resign if the program were to continue.

also:
George Bush