Government Admits to Yet Another Domestic Spying Program
The Education Department has admitted to searching through millions of student loan records on behalf of the FBI. The government says the operation, known as ?Project Strike Back,? was meant to uncover information on individuals allegedly related to terror investigations.
The Education Department has admitted to searching through millions of student loan records on behalf of the FBI. The government says the operation, known as ?Project Strike Back,? was meant to uncover information on individuals allegedly related to terror investigations.
The FBI defended the program, claiming intelligence suggested would-be terrorists attempted to use student loans to fund their nefarious schemes, which might finally explain Bush?s hostility to Pell Grants.
Los Angeles Times:
Your support is crucial…The project ? first disclosed by Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism ? is similar to cooperative, sometimes secret arrangements that the FBI made with other federal agencies to gain information about terror suspects since Sept. 11.
But the idea of the government trolling through massive databases containing information on ordinary citizens has concerned privacy advocates. The sleuthing comes against a backdrop of even more aggressive moves that U.S. terror hunters have made since Sept. 11, such as monitoring phone calls without a court order.
The FBI said the searches were limited and triggered by intelligence indicating that terrorists were exploiting student visa and loan programs.
With an uncertain future and a new administration casting doubt on press freedoms, the danger is clear: The truth is at risk.
Now is the time to give. Your tax-deductible support allows us to dig deeper, delivering fearless investigative reporting and analysis that exposes what’s really happening — without compromise.
During this holiday season, stand with our courageous journalists. Donate today to protect a free press, uphold democracy and ensure the stories that matter are told.
Since April, at least 69 people have been appointed or transferred to political jobs within the administration with little or no fanfare. A ProPublica investigation reveals who some of them are.
The Obama administration has seen another key player out the door. This time, it's national security adviser James Jones, whom Obama thanked for his "sacrifices" in his announcement in the White House's Rose Garden on Friday. Who's next?
In alleged retaliation for Republican stonewalling, President Barack Obama will bypass the Senate and make recess appointments to 15 high-level administration jobs. For context, George W. Bush made more than 170 such appointments; Bill Clinton made nearly 140.
Could the current climate in Washington, D.C., be discouraging lobbyists from practicing their persuasive trade in and around the White House? Or does the downsizing of their ranks have more to do with the economy than the political zeitgeist on Capitol Hill?
The bad rap that "faith-based initiatives" got during the last administration hasn't kept the new management at the White House from treating its Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships seriously. It has fleshed out the lineup of advisers to a total of 25 with two new recruits.
Here are the five most-read stories of the last seven days, including Chris Hedges on America's moral meltdown and Robert Scheer on the economic incompetents who find easy employment in the Obama administration. Full list after the jump.
You need to be a supporter to comment.
There are currently no responses to this article.
Be the first to respond.