FBI abuses power, then lies about it
Mistakes in FBI use of power to get records: report
Reuters
The FBI improperly obtained credit reports and other information on individuals through errors in using its power to investigate terrorism or espionage suspects, the Washington Post reported, citing a U.S. Justice Department audit.
The findings prompted an "incensed" Attorney General Alberto Gonzales to order the FBI to place new safeguards over its use of so-called national-security letters to secretly demand telephone, e-mail and financial records, the Post said in its Friday edition.
"These past mistakes will not be tolerated," Gonzales spokeswoman Tasia Scolinos was quoted as telling the Post. The Justice Department did not immediately respond to calls seeking comment.
National-security letters allow the FBI to compel the release of private information such as communications or financial records without getting authority from a judge or grand jury. Their use has grown exponentially since the September 11 attacks, the Post said.
(The rest is here. Below is the related story:)
FBI underreported use of USA Patriot Act
By LARA JAKES JORDAN
Associated Press
The FBI underreported its use of the USA Patriot Act to force businesses to turn over customer information in suspected terrorism cases, according to a Justice Department audit.
One government official familiar with the report said shoddy bookkeeping and records management led to the problems. The FBI agents appeared to be overwhelmed by the volume of demands for information over a two-year period, the official said.
"They lost track," said the official who like others interviewed late Thursday spoke on condition of anonymity because the report was not being released until Friday.
The FBI in 2005 reported to Congress that its agents had delivered a total of 9,254 national security letters seeking e-mail, telephone or financial information on 3,501 U.S. citizens and legal residents over the previous two years.
Justice Department Inspector General Glenn A. Fine's report says that number was underreported by 20 percent, according to the officials.
(Continued here.)
Reuters
The FBI improperly obtained credit reports and other information on individuals through errors in using its power to investigate terrorism or espionage suspects, the Washington Post reported, citing a U.S. Justice Department audit.
The findings prompted an "incensed" Attorney General Alberto Gonzales to order the FBI to place new safeguards over its use of so-called national-security letters to secretly demand telephone, e-mail and financial records, the Post said in its Friday edition.
"These past mistakes will not be tolerated," Gonzales spokeswoman Tasia Scolinos was quoted as telling the Post. The Justice Department did not immediately respond to calls seeking comment.
National-security letters allow the FBI to compel the release of private information such as communications or financial records without getting authority from a judge or grand jury. Their use has grown exponentially since the September 11 attacks, the Post said.
(The rest is here. Below is the related story:)
FBI underreported use of USA Patriot Act
By LARA JAKES JORDAN
Associated Press
The FBI underreported its use of the USA Patriot Act to force businesses to turn over customer information in suspected terrorism cases, according to a Justice Department audit.
One government official familiar with the report said shoddy bookkeeping and records management led to the problems. The FBI agents appeared to be overwhelmed by the volume of demands for information over a two-year period, the official said.
"They lost track," said the official who like others interviewed late Thursday spoke on condition of anonymity because the report was not being released until Friday.
The FBI in 2005 reported to Congress that its agents had delivered a total of 9,254 national security letters seeking e-mail, telephone or financial information on 3,501 U.S. citizens and legal residents over the previous two years.
Justice Department Inspector General Glenn A. Fine's report says that number was underreported by 20 percent, according to the officials.
(Continued here.)
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1 Comments:
This is what you get when you have a federal agency packed with cronies from across two or more administrations. It is no secret there are many Clinton-era personnel at both the FBI and CIA that buck heads with Bush-era personnel. The leaks, the lies, the abuse, the mismanagement...I could go on.
As I have mentioned on Vox Verax before (as has Protest Warrior) this is another case study of how dysfunctional federal government bureaucracy is. I can't imagine anyone truly wants the federal bureaucracy in charge of one's health care regardless of how 'well intentioned' the bureaucracy might be. Unless, of course, all that matters is winning elections as universal health care might be a winning issue.
Please, leave me and my family out of the universal health care system. We'll manage without someone in Washington telling us which doctor to visit and what prescriptions to take and which hospital to visit.
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