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NSA: Revealing How Many Americans We’ve Spied On Would Violate Their Privacy
By Stephen C. Webster
Tuesday, June 19, 2012 9:52 EDT
In a letter (PDF) recently sent to Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Mark Udall (D-CO), the National Security Agency’s (NSA) Inspector General explains that he cannot provide an estimate of how many Americans the agency has spied on, because doing so would “would itself violate the privacy of U.S. persons.”
That letter was first obtained by reporter Spencer Ackerman at Wired. It claims that even attempting to produce an estimate of how many Americans the agency has spied on is “beyond the [Inspector General's] capacity,” and that “dedicating sufficient additional resources would likely impede the NSA’s mission.”
Inspector General I. Charles McCullough concludes his letter by claiming that he “firmly [believes] that oversight of intelligence collection is a proper function of an Inspector General,” adding that he will “continue to work with you and the Committee to identify ways that we can enhance our ability to conduct effective oversight.”
