Political Quotes

“I thank the Senator from North Carolina, and I appreciate his work and the majority leader's work on this critical issue. I have been working hand in glove with them all along. I would say the answer to the question is, no, this does not raise any reasonable concern about privacy. In fact, the program does not collect any content. It does not surveil any phone call. It doesn't even include any personally identifiable information. I have spent hours with the intelligence officers and the FBI agents who are responsible for administering these programs--not merely the general counsels or the directors of these agencies but the men and women who administer them. I have asked them what they think poses a greater risk to their privacy--the discount grocery card the Senator from North Carolina mentioned or the fact that e-commerce Web sites have their name, address, credit card number, and personal history? And to a person, every one of them said a greater threat to their privacy is commercial marketing practices, not this program. The program has been approved 40 times by 15 different independent Federal judges based on 36 years of Supreme Court precedent and has been approved by two Presidents of both parties. If President Obama wanted to end the program tomorrow, he could, but he hasn't.…”