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After NSA Spying Flap, Germany Asks CIA Station Chief to Depart
The Washington Post reports that Gemany's government has asked the CIA station chief in that country to leave. From the article, which points out the move comes after several high-profile instances of U.S. spying on German citiens, including Chancellor Angela Merkl:. "A day earlier, federal prosecutors in Germany said police had searched the office and apartment of an individual with ties to the German military who is suspected of working for U.S. intelligence. Those raids followed the arrest of an employee of Germany’s foreign intelligence service who was accused of selling secrets to the CIA. ... For years, Germany has sought to be included in a group of countries with which the United States has a non-espionage pact. Those nations include Britain, Australia, Canada and New Zealand.
The Obama administration and that of George W. Bush both resisted such entreaties, in part because many U.S. intelligence officials believe that there are too many areas where German and U.S. security interests diverge."
Not really, but the outrage would be less phony if they weren't such hypocrites.
When Germany rolled over the first time, it was an invitation for more. Same is true here with the American people.
No they don't. The supreme court actually has something to say in Germany, and its constitution is pretty strong (also in practice) w.r.t. privacy and citizens rights. I'm not german myself (but living near germany). My impression, also from German newspapers etc., is that most germans including politicians are truely mad and are seriously considering to cool down relations with the USA. The USA is risking to loose one of the few remaining friends it has in the world.
As to why the 'cheap shot', it's because Obama has been expanding upon many of Bush's most-hated policies. In his campaign speeches, he promised to scale back the War on Terror, close Gitmo and rein in the surveillance apparatus. He has done none of these things, and has indeed intensified those efforts.
'He who has to break a thing to find out what it is, has left the path of wisdom.' -- Gandalf to Saruman
| The Obama administration and that of George W. Bush both resisted such entreaties, in part because many U.S. intelligence officials believe that there are too many areas where German and U.S. security interests diverge."
This is a euphemism for saying "we believe that the German intelligence department is significantly penetrated by the Russian FSB".
Of course the German intelligence apparatus also spies on US, and France and UK, as they all do to one another.
You may not know this, but the President of the United States doesn't have an office in the NSA, and doesn't have direct access to their leadership or decision-making.
So no, Obama isn't trying to achieve anything, as it is somebody else doing it.
Being able to fire the person at the top gives limited control in certain types of circumstances. In a regular business it means you have a lot of control over a department. But even a large corporation, you might not be able to succeed at getting things done the way you want just by firing department heads; and there is a cost to morale in attempting it.
In the case of Government, the workers are the same under one President and the next, and they can drag their feet and wait-out a President who tries to micro-manage them. But also, appointing department heads for a President is a political act, it has real cost, and if you try to do it with a weak hand then Congress will win that battle. Also, the departments have entrenched support from Congress-critters that have been in place longer than the President and will be in place after his terms expire.
You just can't use a small-business-owner model of Control to understand the powers of the President here. He's the one that has to explain the policies to the people, but in Intelligence and Law Enforcement, Congress has erected barriers to direct Presidential control. People often imagine that the President can just walk into any department and look at anything and order anybody around, but actually he's not a dictator, and can only move the levers of power that are provided.
I'd prefer a more proactive response, maybe carry around a bunch of WWII concentration camp photos and wave those around whenever the Germans complain about "spying."
No they shouldn't be punished forever, but we probably should keep an eye on them forever.
... we in the USA could also tell the CIA to GTFO.
I'd prefer a more proactive response, maybe carry around a bunch of WWII concentration camp photos and wave those around whenever the Germans complain about "spying."
No they shouldn't be punished forever, but we probably should keep an eye on them forever.
Their history with the Nazi state and the Gestapo secret police is exactly why Germans are so bothered by spying. They know for a fact that gathered information can easily be put to nefarious use.
I get a feeling that overt nationalism is quite frowned upon in Germany. I have had a few German colleagues in the past who refused to even sing their national anthem. So while it is reasonably correct to assume that Germans are loyal to they own country, I don't think national pride would come in the way of Klinsmann's professionalism.
Actually, he DOES have direct access to their leadership and decision-making. He's the PRESIDENT!
All he needs to do is pick up his phone and call the NSA Director, tell him to get his ass over to the White House RIGHT NOW, and, lo, the NSA Director will be heading toward the White House.
Then he tells the NSA Director words to the effect of "Stop this shit, right the F**k now!", and lo, it will be stopped.
And if that doesn't work, there's the "Fire him, right now" option. Like when Truman fired MacArthur back in the day.
Remember, he's the President. Head of the Executive Branch. Which includes both CIA and NSA. They all work for HIM, not the other way around.
The fact that this is still going on does not show a lack of power on the part of Obama, it shows agreement with this on the part of Obama.
"I do not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"