One thing about the FISA bill that just passed which seems to have been shuffled under the mat is a simple word "" after "" The bill gives immunity to the telecoms for their eavesdropping on their customers after 9/11. However, they were forced to do so in February 2001, 7 months before 9/11. One only needs to ask Joe Nacchio, ex-CEO of QWEST about the government's request. In February 2001 the telecom QWEST, for which he was the CEO, was requested to eavesdrop on their customers for the National Security Agency. Mr. Nacchio declined the request on the grounds that what he was being asked to do was illegal. The government, as a result of his rejection, withdrew all of the contracts they had with the company. Mr. Nacchio sold the stock he had with QWEST. The government then had him tried and convicted of "insider trading."- He is serving a 6 year prison sentence.
The other telecoms, every one of them, undertook the illegal wiretapping, knowing it was illegal, but most likely not wanting to suffer the loss of government contracts. Thus, they willfully performed illegal acts for the purpose of financial gain, and they did it before 9/11.
Not only did they perform illegal acts for financial gain, but their acts proved worthless as 9/11 in fact did occur so one can assume that possibly their eavesdropping was for purposes other than preventing attacks on our soil.
