Statement for the Record of NSA Director Lt Gen Michael V. Hayden, USAF, House Permanet Select Committee on Intelligence, 12 April 2000:
“In performing our mission, NSA constantly deals with information that must remain confidential so that we can continue to collect foreign intelligence information on various subjects that are of vital interest to the nation. Intelligence functions are of necessity conducted in secret, yet the principles of our democracy require an informed populace and public debate on national issues. The American people must be confident that the power they have entrusted to us is not being, and will not be, abused. These opposing principles–secrecy on one hand, and open debate on the other–can be reconciled successfully through rigorous oversight. The current oversight framework reconciles these principles. It serves as a needed check on what otherwise has the potential to be an intrusive system. The regulatory and oversight structure, in place now for nearly a quarter of a century, has ensured that the imperatives of national security are balanced with democratic values. Mr. Chairman, this is a complex and difficult issue, one that involves an intricate mix of technical and legal nuance. In the end, however, the concerns expressed about NSAs capabilities strike at very basic desires on the part of our citizens to be secure in their homes, in their persons, and in their communications. My appearance here today is as the Director of NSA. But Im also here as a citizen who believes that the careful and continuing oversight of NSA — at many levels, internal and external — represents a commitment to striking a balance between the government’s need for information against the privacy rights of U.S. persons that my fellow citizens and their elected representatives can endorse. I can assure you, Mr. Chairman, and all our citizens, that I consider the maintenance of that balance one of my highest priorities, as do the other men and women of NSA.” [emphasis added]
See also this related PowerPoint presentationprovided as documention during the hearing referenced above. [links via cryptome]
Related postings on domestic surveillance
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