Article Image

IPFS News Link • Congress-Congressmen

Attorney: Spy chief had 'forgotten' about NSA program when he misled Congress

• http://thehill.com, By Julian Hattem

He just forgot.

"This was not an untruth or a falsehood. This was just a mistake on his part," Robert Litt, the general counsel for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, said during a panel discussion hosted by the Advisory Committee on Transparency on Friday.

"We all make mistakes."

The comments add to the years of criticismthat Clapper has received for his testimony in the 2013 Senate Intelligence Committee hearing.

In the public session, longtime surveillance critic Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) had asked Clapper whether or not the NSA collected "any type of data at all on millions of Americans."

"No sir," Clapper responded. "There are cases where they could inadvertently perhaps collect, but not wittingly."


Free Talk Live