President Bush insisted on Tuesday that the government does not listen to the telephone conversations of ordinary Americans 'without approval' but did not deny that the government was collecting call data on tens of millions of ordinary Americans from telecommunications companies.
'We do not listen to domestic phone calls without court approval,' Bush claimed during a press conference with Australian Prime Minister John Howard on Tuesday.
Once again, Bush used the threat of terrorism as a justification for his programs, adding, 'What I've told the American people is we'll protect them against an al-Qaeda attack. And we'll do that within the law.'
Bush did not respond directly when asked whether or not having the National Security Agency (NSA) gather phone records for tens of millions of ordinary Americans was an invasion of their privacy.
Bush indirectly admitted that the program existed, saying that the program 'is one that has been fully briefed to members of the United States Congress in both political parties. They're very aware of what is taking place. The American people expect their government to protect them within the laws of this country and I'm going to continue to do just that.'
Bush's new press secretary, Tony Snow, later said Bush was not talking about domestic surveillance when he answered the reporters questions. 'He was talking about foreign-to-domestic calls,' Snow later claimed. 'The allegations in the 'USA Today' piece were of a different nature.'
It appears that what has been revealed thus far may only be the tip of the iceberg so far as the Bush administration's secret surveillance on Americans goes.
