A New York Times article on December 16, 2005, “reported that the super-secret National Security Agency had intercepted telephone calls and e-mails traveling into and out of the United States, so long as one of the parties to the communication was suspected of being a member of al Qaeda. Surveillance took place without a FISA […]
12/16/2005
After journalists James Risen and Eric Lichtblau exposed the National Security Agency’s (NSA’s) warrantless surveillance controversy in a New York Times article on December 16, 2005, “President Bush, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, the head of the NSA at the beginning of the program, [former NSA Director] General Michael Hayden, and others all defended the program […]
12/15/2005
As stated in "The Report of the Iraq Inquiry – Executive Summary:" "Parliamentary elections in Iraq." – Commissioned by the Prime Minister The Right Honourable Gordon Brown MP, “The Report of the Iraq Inquiry: Executive Summary,” IraqInquiry.org.uk, Dec. 15, 2005, […]
12/15/2005
The New York Times “posted the story [about the National Security Agency’s warrantless surveillance program] on the newspaper’s Web site on the evening of December 15 [2005], shortly after informing the White House. [President] Bush and [Vice President Dick] Cheney felt betrayed by not having much if any real notice, which exacerbated their anger. The […]
12/15/2005
“During 2005, alarmed by the course of events, [al Qaeda second-in-command Ayman al-] Zawahiri sent a letter to [al Qaeda in Iraq leader Abu Musab al-] Zarqawi urging him to show restraint. In December of that year, when Zarqawi failed to heed such calls, [senior al Qaeda member Atiyah Abd al-] Rahman sent a much […]
12/15/2005
Appearing on National Public Radio on December 15, 2005, former Deputy Chief of the Office of Legal Counsel John Yoo “admitted that ‘some of the worst possible interrogation methods we’ve heard of in the press have been reserved for the leaders of al-Qaeda that we’ve captured’ and, with remarkable candor and abandonment, ‘I’ve defended the […]
12/15/2005
In Iraq, “The third election of the year, held in December [15, 2005], was to replace the interim assembly with a permanent legislature. Once again, Iraqis defied terrorist threats. Nearly twelve million people–a turnout of more than 70 percent–cast their ballots. This time Sunnis participated in overwhelming numbers.” – George W. Bush, Decision Points, Page […]
12/15/2005
“In several respects, the [December 15, 2005] elections [in Iraq] were an unprecedented success. Voter participation jumped dramatically, from 9.8 million in the October 15 constitutional referendum to nearly 11 million in December (about 70 percent of registered voters), despite the continued efforts of Sunni jihadist groups to deter voting.” – Larry Diamond, Squandered Victory, […]
12/15/2005
“The elections on 15 December, 2005 were a watershed in Iraq’s history and the final milestone in the political process that had begun with the transfer of sovereignty in June 2004. Unlike the earlier elections of January, which were Iraq’s first free elections after the war, the December 2005 elections were considered more representative. The […]
12/15/2005
“Since shortly after 9/11 the National Security Agency (NSA), the government entity responsible for listening in on enemy communications, had broadened its mandate to include communications in which one of the parties was in the United States. According to the [New York] Times [on December 15, 2005]: ‘Months after the Sept. 11 attacks, President Bush […]