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Did Obama Name James Comey to FBI to Distract From Phone Records Scandal?

1,026 views · Published 6 June 2013 · 1:37 · Indexed 4 November 2026

Channel: Democracy Now! · 2013 · News & Politics

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Watch the full report on Democracy Now! at http://owl.li/lMAJb. Amidst an uproar over the seizure of journalists' phone records, the Obama administration announced last week it's tapped former Bush administration official James Comey to head the FBI. Comey has received praise for refusing to reauthorize the Bush administration's warrantless spy program while serving as acting attorney general in Ashcroft's place. Shayana Kadidal, Senior Managing Attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights, says that in a bid to distract from the phone records scandal, Obama may have named Comey because of his reputation for standing up to Bush. But Comey had previously signed off on the spy program when it began, allowing the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on the phone calls and emails of U.S. citizens without court warrants.

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