Saturday, March 29, 2014

NSA Chief Steps Down Without Mentioning Snowden Affair



 
Alexander in 2013
16th Director of the National Security Agency (NSA)

NSA Chief Steps Down Without Mentioning Snowden Affair
Friday, 28 Mar 2014 09:33 PM
By Cathy Burke
The head of the National Security Agency stepped down Friday -- without once uttering the name of spy secrets leaker Edward Snowden, whose massive revelations shocked the nation and rocked the spy agency.

Military veteran Gen. Keith Alexander formally relinquished control after nine years at the helm of the NSA in a ceremony at the NSA's Fort Meade, Md., headquarters.

Alexander quoted General Douglas MacArthur’s thoughts on patriotism, morality and service from his 1962 retirement speech at West Point, calling them “especially applicable with all that has gone on in the past year," the Guardian reported.

It was the only reference to Snowden's spy secrets leaks.

"Thanks for protecting our nation. Thanks for protecting our civil liberties and privacy. Thanks for doing your job when many others would have walked away,” Alexander said, the British newspaper reported.

Though Alexander is credited with expanding the agency's powers and influence, his tenure will likely be better remembered for the agency's spying dragnets around the globe that were leaked through documents handed over to the Guardian, the Washington Post and other news outlets.

Defense secretary Chuck Hagel said the leaks had created “one of the most challenging periods” in the NSA’s history, though director of national intelligence James Clapper said he'd "never heard him complain," the Guardian reported.

General Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, compared Alexander to James Bond.

“Can anyone guess what number he keeps on his parking spot at Fort Meade?” Dempsey said. “007.”

Peter Singer, a cybersecurity scholar at the Brookings Institution, told the Guardian Alexander’s successor, Vice Admiral Michael Rogers, faces "an immense uphill battle in the post-Snowden, post-Alexander world."

"It's good that we're now selling a message of restraint, but it's not clear the rest of the world is going to buy it," he told the newspaper.

Critics have claimed Alexander has tried to withhold information from the American people and overseen unconstitutional operations, The Hill noted.

In a Fox News interview earlier in the week, Alexander predicted the leaks would "haunt" Snowden "for the rest of his life.”

President Obama has unveiled a proposal to end the NSA's phone data collection; the proposal now heads to Capitol Hill.

National Security Agency
Keith B. Alexander is the director for the National Security Agency (NSA), and a friend of Barbara G. Fast.

Note: Michael S. Rogers is a director nominee for the National Security Agency (NSA).
Barbara G. Fast is a friend of Keith B. Alexander, was a VP for the CGI Group Inc., and a VP at the Boeing Company.
CGI Group Inc. was the Obamacare contractor that developed Healthcare.gov web site.
Obamacare is Barack Obama’s signature policy initiative.
Boeing Company is a contractor for the National Security Agency (NSA).
W. James McNerney Jr. is the chairman & president & CEO for the Boeing Company, and a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.
R. Eden Martin is the president of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and counsel at Sidley Austin LLP
Michelle Obama was a lawyer at Sidley Austin LLP.
Barack Obama was an intern at Sidley Austin LLP, and Obamacare is his signature policy initiative.
Newton N. Minow is a senior counsel at Sidley Austin LLP, and a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.
Robert S. Osborne is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and the EVP & general counsel for Booz Allen Hamilton.
Edward Snowden was an employee at Booz Allen Hamilton, and leaked information about the National Security Agency (NSA).
Booz Allen Hamilton is a contractor for the National Security Agency (NSA).
James R. Clapper was an executive director, military intelligence programs for Booz Allen Hamilton, the under secretary for intelligence for the U.S. Department of Defense, and is a director at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence for the Barack Obama administration.
National Security Agency (NSA) is an agency for the U.S. Department of Defense.
Chuck Hagel is the secretary at the U.S. Department of Defense for the Barack Obama administration, and was the chairman for the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank).
Open Society Foundations was a funder for the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank).
George Soros is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations, and was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.
Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank), and the Aspen Institute (think tank).
Peter W. Singer is a senior fellow & director of the Center for 21st Century Security for the Brookings Institution (think tank), and was the coordinator, defense policy task force for the 2008 Barack Obama presidential campaign.
Cyrus F. Freidheim Jr. is an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and was a managing director at Booz Allen Hamilton.
Booz Allen Hamilton is a contractor for the National Security Agency (NSA).
Boeing Company is a contractor for the National Security Agency (NSA).
W. James McNerney Jr. is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and the chairman & president & CEO for the Boeing Company.
Barbara G. Fast was a VP at the Boeing Company, a VP for the CGI Group Inc., and is a friend of Keith B. Alexander.
CGI Group Inc. was the Obamacare contractor that developed Healthcare.gov web site.
Obamacare is Barack Obama’s signature policy initiative.
Keith B. Alexander is a friend of Barbara G. Fast, and a director at the National Security Agency (NSA).
General Dynamics Corporation is a contractor for the National Security Agency (NSA).
James S. Crown is a director at the General Dynamics Corporation, a trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank), and a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.
Lester Crown was a director at the General Dynamics Corporation, a lifetime trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank), and is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.
Commercial Club of Chicago, Members Directory A-Z (Past Research)
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Cyrus F. Freidheim Jr. is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and was a managing director at Booz Allen Hamilton.
Robert S. Osborne is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and the EVP & general counsel for Booz Allen Hamilton.
Booz Allen Hamilton is a contractor for the National Security Agency (NSA).
























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