A Reflection on the NSA Spying Disclosures

               Several months ago, before Glenn Greenwald made his first disclosure about NSA spying and before anyone knew who Edward Snowden was, the U.S. Government was embroiled in multiple scandals. There was the scandal concerning the government’s response to the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya (as well as the government’s actions in the months before the attack). Then there was the admission that the IRS targeted for extra scrutiny Tea Party and other conservative-affiliated groups seeking tax-exempt status. Then came the revelation that the Justice Department secretly seized the phone records of Associated Press reporters and editors. These stories dominated our headlines during a time when there was (and still is) so much going on in the world, including the situation in Syria, a struggling American economy, and dysfunction in Washington. All three of these scandals posed severe distractions for the White House.
               Then came the biggest shocker of all; that the NSA had ordered Verizon to hand over metadata on all telephone calls in its systems, both within the US and between the US and other countries. I admit, I was completely shocked by this revelation. My family uses Verizon as its telephone provider, and all of us use Verizon Wireless for our cellular service. It sent a chill down my spine knowing that the NSA knows about every phone call I have made or received for a three-month period. I was also surprised by the number of representatives and senators who immediately came out in defense of the NSA, because previous disclosures about government intrusion have often seen universal condemnation within the country. It was kind of interesting to see some politicians defend the program by saying it was just metadata, because as we discussed in class metadata can be used to construct comprehensive digital profiles of individuals, including details on family life, employment, and political and religious affiliations.
               The Verizon order, however, was only the tip of the iceberg. Mr. Snowden also told us about the PRISM program, which involves major Internet companies such as Google, Facebook, Yahoo!, and AOL handing over user data to the NSA. We also learned about XKeyscore, a tool allowing NSA analysts to obtain information on almost anything a user does on the Internet. Today, we learned that the NSA and its British counterpart, the GCHQ had broken much of the encryption mechanisms that protect our sensitive personal information online. I have found it hard to believe that all of this could be legal. It appeared to me that some serious Fourth Amendment violations might have occurred. We are supposed to feel safe when we make telephone calls or when we go online; safe not just from those who intend to do us harm, but also safe from the watchful eyes of Big Brother. All of these disclosures are giving many Americans the feeling that they cannot have any privacy or safety on the Internet. In an age where the Internet has become an essential part of our everyday lives, this should make everyone nervous; it certainly makes me nervous.
               Let us also not forget that news of the NSA’s behavior is impacting our standing in the world and our relationships with critical allies. Documents leaked by Mr. Snowden and published by Mr. Greenwald indicate that the NSA has spied on key US allies including France, Germany, Brazil, and on multinational organizations including the European Union and the United Nations. These revelations have shaken the trust that our allies have in us. European legislators have warned that the disclosures could impact US-EU negotiations on a free trade agreement, which could be a boon to job creation in the US. Within the last week we learned that the NSA spied on the personal communications of the Brazilian and Mexican presidents, news that has angered these two nations and is threatening a planned state visit by the Brazilian president to the US. Supposedly the intercepted communications included discussions by the Mexican president about potential cabinet picks while he was still a candidate; what value does that kind of information have in helping the US prevent terrorist attacks (which the NSA claims is the purpose of its surveillance programs)? None! We cooperate with our allies on a whole range of issues, but if we are putting those countries in a position where they cannot trust us, then we will have a very hard time strengthening our relationships with our allies, which we will need to do in order to meet the great challenges of our time.
               It has now been several months since the Verizon disclosure started an endless stream of new NSA spying revelations that continues to this day with no end in sight. Mr. Greenwald has promised many more revelations to come. These disclosures have become so numerous that any further revelations probably will not surprise me. The revelations made so far have given me a much clearer picture of how aggressive the NSA really is. Any further disclosures will only serve to remind me of what I already know the NSA is capable of. The last few months have been very interesting, and it looks to be that way for many months to come.