NSA Scandal: Obama’s PromisesNot Enough for German Government
Published in Spiegel Online
(Germany) on 18 January 2014
by Editorial (link to original)
Nice words, few reforms: In his speech on Friday, President Obama stood by the intelligence agency - curtailing the National Security Agency’s (NSA) activities was out of the question. His speech has left people skeptical. Obama’s words are not enough for the German government.
Barack Obama’s 45 minute speech (SEE HERE) regarding the spying activities of the NSA has disappointed many. Although the world was expecting the activities of the NSA to be curtailed (SEE HERE), there was only a polished speech that merely outlined superficial reforms. These are the words of journalist Glenn Greenwald (SEE HERE), who first shed light on the scandal by leaking Snowden’s data.
German politicians agree with Greenwald’s statement: The German government, coalition parties and opposition have reacted cautiously to the president’s reform plans. Saturday’s widespread consensus was that, although there were positive signals, the president’s speech does not herald a change of course.
Although Obama had made corrections to the spying activities of the controversial NSA, he basically defended (SEE HERE) the intelligence agency’s work. Despite global outrage against their intelligence (SEE HERE) activities, the president stood firm. For half a year, his men combed through the maze looking for alternatives and corrections. They did not find much that they wanted to change. The data-octopus NSA (SEE HERE) has hardly been tamed. Obama did not mention the collection of emails, texts, photos or whereabouts of people. The tapping of servers of leading Internet firms was also left unmentioned. Whether all of it is unconstitutional, he did not touch upon that question.
Only a Small Restriction of Power
What was delivered were calming words, an assurance that the U.S. had nothing malicious in mind: "Our system of government is built on the premise that our liberty cannot depend on the good intentions of those in power." said Obama. "It depends on the law to constrain those in power."
There was very little constraining of power in his proposals: Spying on the heads of state and government officials of friendly countries will only be allowed if justified by compelling U.S. national security interests. He did not mention eavesdropping on ministers or top officials. The services should only oversee foreigners when national security is concretely endangered. This leaves a lot of leeway - and the U.S. obviously wants to keep it that way.
No Political Pressure on the US
The German Justice Minister Heiko Maas (SEE HERE) sees the safeguards set against spying activities as not going far enough. "Only if we sign a binding agreement protecting the data of all citizens will we be able to win back the trust we have lost," said the Social Democrat party member to the newspaper Bild am Sonntag. The Union faction leader Volker Kauder (SEE HERE) said that there were no means of exerting political pressure on the United States: "We are stuck in a classical dilemma."
"President Obama has only just started taking steps. The NSA should not be allowed to freely collect data without restrictions," said Maas. Precisely in the U.S., evidence has long been presented showing that the massive amount of data could not even be evaluated and has not helped in securing the country against terror attacks.
Wolfgang Bosbach (SEE HERE), the Christian Democrat who is an expert in domestic affairs told Deutschlandfunk that he was not convinced the U.S. government and U.S. Congress are "seriously thinking about categorically reforming the type and scope of spying practices that have been undertaken to this day." Obama’s announcement was not directed at reassuring the German people, he explained to the Rheinische Post, and he does not want to take far-reaching actions where collecting information is concerned.
The Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Norbert Röttgen (SEE HERE) (Christian Democratic Union; CDU) described Obama’s speech as "being more technical in nature." The future coordinator of trans-Atlantic relations, Philipp Mißfelder (SEE HERE) (CDU), told Deutschlandradio Kultur that this could be a tough process if Obama’s proposals had to go through Congress.
Elmar Brok (SEE HERE), Christian Democrat and member of the European Parliament, expressed disappointment in connection to the Obama speech. "Although promises have been made there is a lack of legal obligations that can be checked," said the chair of the European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs to the German Press Agency in Berlin. "It was a comforting speech. But there is no substantial progress in the state of affairs or toward what was considered practice up until now."
It is a Matter for the Chancellor
The president’s speech has also been praised. Initial reactions portray that, by curtailing the authority of the NSA, Obama has overcome considerable opposition and demonstrates courage. Indeed, Obama shows good judgment by banning spying on political allies.
Christian Democrat Clemens Binninger, chair of the parliamentary control group which provides oversight for the German intelligence service, told the Stuttgarter Nachrichten about the groundbreaking speech by Obama. "The president made it clear that the people’s concerns in other countries do not leave him unaffected."
The president has actually discussed this issue for the first time for a whole 45 minutes. Hans-Christian Ströbele (SEE HERE), a Green politician, described the speech during ZDF’s daily news program as remarkable. "Although this is progress, I have not heard this expressed by our politicians, Chancellor or intelligence agencies so far."
In the Passauer Neune Presse, he demands that "the Chancellor should take the matter into her own hands."
Barack Obama’s 45 minute speech (SEE HERE) regarding the spying activities of the NSA has disappointed many. Although the world was expecting the activities of the NSA to be curtailed (SEE HERE), there was only a polished speech that merely outlined superficial reforms. These are the words of journalist Glenn Greenwald (SEE HERE), who first shed light on the scandal by leaking Snowden’s data.
German politicians agree with Greenwald’s statement: The German government, coalition parties and opposition have reacted cautiously to the president’s reform plans. Saturday’s widespread consensus was that, although there were positive signals, the president’s speech does not herald a change of course.
Although Obama had made corrections to the spying activities of the controversial NSA, he basically defended (SEE HERE) the intelligence agency’s work. Despite global outrage against their intelligence (SEE HERE) activities, the president stood firm. For half a year, his men combed through the maze looking for alternatives and corrections. They did not find much that they wanted to change. The data-octopus NSA (SEE HERE) has hardly been tamed. Obama did not mention the collection of emails, texts, photos or whereabouts of people. The tapping of servers of leading Internet firms was also left unmentioned. Whether all of it is unconstitutional, he did not touch upon that question.
Only a Small Restriction of Power
What was delivered were calming words, an assurance that the U.S. had nothing malicious in mind: "Our system of government is built on the premise that our liberty cannot depend on the good intentions of those in power." said Obama. "It depends on the law to constrain those in power."
There was very little constraining of power in his proposals: Spying on the heads of state and government officials of friendly countries will only be allowed if justified by compelling U.S. national security interests. He did not mention eavesdropping on ministers or top officials. The services should only oversee foreigners when national security is concretely endangered. This leaves a lot of leeway - and the U.S. obviously wants to keep it that way.
No Political Pressure on the US
The German Justice Minister Heiko Maas (SEE HERE) sees the safeguards set against spying activities as not going far enough. "Only if we sign a binding agreement protecting the data of all citizens will we be able to win back the trust we have lost," said the Social Democrat party member to the newspaper Bild am Sonntag. The Union faction leader Volker Kauder (SEE HERE) said that there were no means of exerting political pressure on the United States: "We are stuck in a classical dilemma."
"President Obama has only just started taking steps. The NSA should not be allowed to freely collect data without restrictions," said Maas. Precisely in the U.S., evidence has long been presented showing that the massive amount of data could not even be evaluated and has not helped in securing the country against terror attacks.
Wolfgang Bosbach (SEE HERE), the Christian Democrat who is an expert in domestic affairs told Deutschlandfunk that he was not convinced the U.S. government and U.S. Congress are "seriously thinking about categorically reforming the type and scope of spying practices that have been undertaken to this day." Obama’s announcement was not directed at reassuring the German people, he explained to the Rheinische Post, and he does not want to take far-reaching actions where collecting information is concerned.
The Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Norbert Röttgen (SEE HERE) (Christian Democratic Union; CDU) described Obama’s speech as "being more technical in nature." The future coordinator of trans-Atlantic relations, Philipp Mißfelder (SEE HERE) (CDU), told Deutschlandradio Kultur that this could be a tough process if Obama’s proposals had to go through Congress.
Elmar Brok (SEE HERE), Christian Democrat and member of the European Parliament, expressed disappointment in connection to the Obama speech. "Although promises have been made there is a lack of legal obligations that can be checked," said the chair of the European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs to the German Press Agency in Berlin. "It was a comforting speech. But there is no substantial progress in the state of affairs or toward what was considered practice up until now."
It is a Matter for the Chancellor
The president’s speech has also been praised. Initial reactions portray that, by curtailing the authority of the NSA, Obama has overcome considerable opposition and demonstrates courage. Indeed, Obama shows good judgment by banning spying on political allies.
Christian Democrat Clemens Binninger, chair of the parliamentary control group which provides oversight for the German intelligence service, told the Stuttgarter Nachrichten about the groundbreaking speech by Obama. "The president made it clear that the people’s concerns in other countries do not leave him unaffected."
The president has actually discussed this issue for the first time for a whole 45 minutes. Hans-Christian Ströbele (SEE HERE), a Green politician, described the speech during ZDF’s daily news program as remarkable. "Although this is progress, I have not heard this expressed by our politicians, Chancellor or intelligence agencies so far."
In the Passauer Neune Presse, he demands that "the Chancellor should take the matter into her own hands."
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