Former CEO Says NSA Punished Phone Firm

Washington Post:

A former Qwest Communications International executive, appealing a conviction for insider trading, has alleged that the government withdrew a $100 million contract after Qwest refused to participate in an unidentified National Security Agency program that the company's top lawyer said was illegal.

Former chief executive Joseph P. Nacchio, convicted in April of 19 counts of insider trading, said the NSA approached Qwest more than six months before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, according to court documents unsealed in Denver this week.

Read the whole story: Washington Post

Comments

[ssaz]

How is it that we've been hoodwinked by the crooks in the Bush administration and most of the public just doesn't seem to give a shit? How much more corrupt does this president and his administration have to get before we impeach the bastard? Does he literally have to shoot someone on the white house lawn before people do something and write their representatives in congress? This article just shows how deep the corruption goes.

[Qbear]

I_M_P_E_A_C_H

[kellygrrrl]

more shocking news.

[ohsaydidyousee]

Not a surprise. 911 was an inside job. Trying to impose martial law using the Nazi model. The Bush family and company are scum. The irony is that the current U.S. policy makers began with Prescott Bush the Dupont family, Remington family, and J.P. Morgan who tried to overthrow the us government by planning to assassinate F.D.R. in 1934. General Smedley Butler two time congressional medal winner worked with these individuals long enough to learn who the perpetrators were blew the whistle before congress. The testimony of the Mcormack Dickstiein hearings of 1934 indicated that these individuals wanted to follow the Nazi model to impose marshal law. The Nazis may have lost the battle but they didn,t lose the war. They have only changed venue. Now they are in Washington. To learn more, go to google video search and type in bush nazi. Watch the Bush family Nazi tie video. It's only 10 minutes long but speaks volumes about this criminal regime. The Reichstag is alive and well, they are in Washington and are fascist war mongering scum

[BreadandRoses]

There's a sale on tin foil at your local Kroger.

Run on down there and stock up.

[Lilybart]

The poster is correct. These are the facts. There was a plan to murder FDR and Prescott Bush's bank was helping Nazi Germany.

I have not read the Mcormack Dickstein hearings, so I cannot attest to that but it must be easy to corroborate.

[alambique]

Cui bono, my friend, cui bono?

[factanonverba]

I agree with the tenor of your post but for the record the Reichstag was the German parliament that its power usurped by Chancellor Hilter.
You should read Naomi Wolf's new book, she lays out quite the case of the fascist creep in the US.
Naomi Klein's book, The Shock Doctrine, is of course quite fitting here. I am beyond shock personally. I find it telling that the Bush wants immunity from prosecution for the phone companies. Now knowing that the phone companies were involved before 9/11 provides the why.

[Birdman]

If this is true it kind of makes GW's argument that they have to do this to fight terrorism it now appears they think the citizens of this country are the enemy.

[serialcoma]

They've always thought that. So long as they acquire wealth and power everything is expendable - including their dullard trolls.

[Ginzaman]

Impeach Bush and Cheney

[speakingtruth2power]

I have no proof that BushCo planned (-11 but it is quite evident that they did nothing to prevent it. Considering what we have learned about the Bush crime family, nothing is beyond their propensity for evil and treason.

Read up on Prescott Bush's Union Banking Corporation funding the Nazis through 1942 or Gary Webb's Pulitzer prize winning work on GHWB's involvement with drugs for guns. You will be shocked over the treason this family is capable of.

The plans to run a fascist cabal were all in place before 9-11, even the occupation of Iraq as well as the attacks on Iran. Don't be so fucking gullible America!!! We are under attack from within by a criminal gang who is backed by international corporatists like Rupert Murdoch.

Swapping another Clinton for another Bush will only lead US to JeeeBush, the last President of the Untied States. If we do not fight tooth and nail NOW, we will be impressed into the Fascist State of NorteAmerica!!!!

[PollM]

Wow even before 9/11.

It's a decision made, it contradicts their contractual agreement with the customer. They should be held responsible as they have violated their agreement. If they are given immunity this behavior will repeat itself. In addition to the above, I believe telecommunication companies need to inform their customers if they have released any info about their customers and what info. Full Disclosure.

Do you believe telecommunication firms should be given immunity for disclosing customers' phone records & other data to the government?
-------> http://www.youpolls.com/details.asp?pid=702
.

[syllepsis]

If this story surprises anyone, that Bush was eager for 9/11 so he could justify his crimes, they are either a naive simpleton or a gangster intent on using the Government as enforcer, aka Republican.

[ReasonIsMyReligion]

Booo youpolls.
Yay beer.

[ZingoBonMot]

-speakingtruth2power-

Wanna read something interesting? Google BioONE and SABRE Technical Services. Rooty is one of the owners. They did the cleanup on the AMI building in Boca Raton after the "poisoned" letter incident after 9/11.
Good stuff. Also Google Victor Ashe. Funny stuff! And NOT funny haha...

[Mileva Maric]

And nobody has ever been caught for the poison letters. Never saw much of an effort investigation wise.

I think of that each time they say we haven't been attacked here since 9-11. If you have not caught the people behind those letters, how do you know it wasn't AL-Ka-aida (this GW)?

In contrast, every ingrown toenail outside of the US is blamed on OBL.

[Conservativeslayer]

Why isn't this story on the main page of huffpo?

[osage]

George W. Bush personifies the most malevolent, irredeemable and unholy aspects of mankind. Not only is he purposefully dishonest, knowingly destructive and shamelessly unremorseful, he defends his indefensible evil actions by hiding and perpetuating the destructive and deadly impact they have on the lives of innocent and defenseless human beings. Hundreds of thousands of guiltless men, women and children who never harbored a harmful thought toward another human being have been killed and crippled as a result of George W. Bush being the president of the United States of America. And his overriding priority is to perpetuate the carnage, not end it. He is an undeniable example of what man is capable of doing to his fellow man. The worst example possible!

[getoffmedz]

osage - and those are his GOOD qualities.

Bush/Cheney is beyond evil.

[accountability]

getoffmedz.
"and those are his GOOD qualities"

smile. Sad smile, but a smile.

[Alvin4NY]

If I didn't know better I would think this was written by Norman Mailer. Great post, and 100% on the money.

[getoffmedz]

Since the Bush/Cheney White House knew the attacks were coming, a fact and did NOTHING to prevent them, this seems very probable.

Who benefited the most from the 9/11 attacks?

[ZingoBonMot]

getoffmedz

THAT'S the One hundred and sixty BILLION (in bullion?..) question, isn't it?

FOLLOW THE MONEY.

[getoffmedz]

ZingoBonMot - And that is only ONE! So many benefited from the horrid misfortune of others on that tragic day especially the foul Bush/Cheney swine herd, the MIC and the petrochemical industry in so many ways.

And they still are benefiting, even today.

[Mileva Maric]

http://www.zeitgeistmovie.com/index.html

Old trick. A means by which to scare people into allowing those in charge to change laws.

[Tom95134]

Bushland, Bushland Ubber Alles. Our new national anthem.

[Felicty]

Who is REALLY surprised to learn this?

I believe that the Supreme Court justices responsible for illegally handing him the presidency back in 2000 should he held accountable as accomplices to Bush's many, many crimes.

[Kansas Evans]

I'm not surprised.

It's kinda like when the US loses the Olympic cross-country skiing competition. I'm disappointed. But not surprised.

While I'm sure about legal action against the Supreme Court, we ARE adding more to the growing evidence for impeachment file.

[rhutcheson]

I would not imagine that this kind of program could have been planned and launched in the one month period after Bush's inauguration. It must, then, have been at least in planning while President Clinton was in office.

Was NSA Director Michael Hayden planning this project, in combination with the incoming Bush administration, without knowledge of President Clinton? Was this the first approach to telecommunications companies? Had other companies already agreed to cooperate?

The Senate Intelligence Committee should call quickly convene hearings on the issue, with Michael Hayden under oath as the initial witness.

[pleeezzze]

D U H !!! you idiot,of course it's Clinton's fault !!

Is'nt EVERYTHING this JACKASS BUSH has done to us and other countries ???

GOD...Get a life !! The BLAME is ON BUSH and his THUGS !!!

We just had the Qwest trial here in Denver and I absolutely believe George and his CRIMINALS caused the downfall of Qwest !!!

I never stood up for Joe Nacchio before, but I do now !!!

[castlerider]

And so bloody WHAT if it WAS planned during Clinton's administration? SO WHAT!!!?
Clinton is over and done with.. That was the past.
WE need to convict the criminals in power, every one of them.
We need honest leaders. Leaders who aren't paranoid (like Bush) who aren't greedy (like Bush) who are not totally buffoon idiots( definitely like Bush). Hopefully we can change America by getting rid of these idiots. Hopefully it will bring about the change needed.
Otherwise we're all sunk.

[accountability]

Pleeeze!
LOL
Of course it was Clinton's fault.

Actually it is Hillary's fault. It is now being revealed that all that Bill has been blamed for was secretly Hillary's doing.
oh yes.

[rhutcheson]

I was suggesting that the NSA implemented a program behind President Clinton's back, at the behest of president-elect Bush. That would be a more serious crime than anything directly mentioned in the article, in my opinion.

Your immediate personal attack makes it clear to me that you are a mindless hack, uninterested in anything but trading useless jargon.

[Birdman]

It is not uncommon for persons in various areas of the government to have plans if a particular person wins. For example Regan's camp was actually negotiating with Iran prior to his win of the whitehouse. I'm sure that the NSA was in communication with the Bush people before he got to the whitehouse, he won in November I'm sure they all had meetings shortly after that to get things rolling.

[sculptor]

Once again the facts show that Bush in his heart is little more that a petty tyrant.

[mommadona]

Hope he's got the paperwork to back that up.

[DontSpin]

I love to think this story is true because then I would feel vindicated. But I want to hear from more Qwest associates about this allegation, because I just don't know how much I'm ready to trust an insider trader.

[Lilybart]

His assistant must have records of the meeting and date, or she would remember that it was at least Feb.

If any of my bosses had a meeting like this he would have told me. Most trust their assistants with everything.