FBI Director Christopher Wray said Tuesday he has never seen a time during his decades-long career when so many threats against the US were all as elevated as they are now, warning senators he sees “blinking lights everywhere.”
During a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, ranking Republican member of the committee, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, asked Wray if he saw “blinking red lights” — referring to warning signs the US missed before the attack of 9/11.
“I see blinking lights everywhere I turn,” Wray said.
Wray also said that the bureau is working “around the clock” to “identify and disrupt” potential attacks by individuals inspired by the Hamas attacks on October 7.
I 100% expect that such warnings will motivate the US to further reign in freedoms and discriminate against specific ethnic groups rather that spark any meaningful introspection about the policies that are the fundamental cause of such threats.
Is it good it’s doing that?
“What are we going to say to the family whose loved one’s care was sabotaged when a hospital was taken offline by a foreign adversary and the FBI wasn’t able to stop the cyber attack,” Wray said.
I abhor when individuals, who should know fucking better, start pulling shit like this.
If he has proof, show it. But don’t use fear-mongering or start pulling at America’s heart strings to justify monitoring America.
Did you even read the preceding paragraph?
The FBI director is pushing senators on reauthorizing Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which is set to expire at the end of this year. The law enables the US government to obtain intelligence by targeting non-Americans overseas who are using US-based communications services.
https://www.dni.gov/files/icotr/Section702-Basics-Infographic.pdf
I am A-OK with this. And if anyone wants to argue that they will break the law and abuse this, what’s the difference? If they intend to break the law, they will do so with or without this provision.
Yeah, I did. Which is why I said this … “justify monitoring America.”
I swear I’m not being obtuse on purpose, but the idea is to spy on non-Americans outside the US. What are you saying they’re doing instead?
Like that time John Brennan the, director of the CIA literally said “We’re all aware of executive order 12333. That order prohibits the CIA from engaging in domestic spying and searches of US citizens within our borders.” and then Edward Snowden dropped a huge truth bomb and revealed that they were indeed drag netting information on anybody and everybody including innocent US citizens?
Yeah… There’s no way they would do something like that again, right?
However, Americans’ data may get picked up as part of incidental collection. That means that if an American is communicating with a foreign target, those communications could be collected. In addition, if federal authorities are already investigating a US person, they may cross-check that person’s information against the 702 database.
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1/6 happened without meaningful consequences. They should clean house.
Wray is not given to making such statements. He should be listened to.
Yeah, the FBI generally keeps a low profile, and Wray has been low-key enough I forgot he was Director. This is alarming.
I’m also wondering how many of those blinking lights are right-wing threats, which is not a thing he would say in such a meeting.
he mentions the right-wing threats
Wray also warned in his opening remarks of the increase in hate crimes, including the “troubling trend” of increased antisemitic threats in the months since October 7.
Yes and no.
I’m sure there really are lots of indicators of risk, and in that sense he should be listened to.
But the FBI has a long recent record of trying to sabotage security protections like encryption, and beating warning drums to weaken infrastructural security might not be worth listening to.
We can recognize that there’s likely elevated risk without taking at face value how the head of an agency with a longstanding agenda is suggesting that risk be mitigated.
The man doesn’t do hyperbole. That’s a fact.
Big claims require evidence bigly
- Donald Sagan
“Are the blinking lights in the room right now?”
“Yeah, right there…points”
“Oh shit! You’re right!”
Is it possible he’s just confused by the fancy LED Christmas lights everyone has now?
That or, you know, the fascist coup planners, China’s rapid and expanding modernization of their navy, Congress critters being outright owned by Russian kleptocrats, a completely disorganized response to cyber security, etc.
Well yeah, sure, there’s always the obvious answer.
Typical cop talk. There is crime everywhere, and my department needs more money to stop it.
Typical cop talk. There is crime everywhere, and my department needs more money to stop it.
Both could be true (real ‘blinking red lights’ problems, as well as farming Congress for more money).
They could both be untrue. Or only one of them. They could even have different degrees of truth. So many options, such little time.
Typical cop talk. There is crime everywhere, and my department needs more money to stop it.
Both could be true (real ‘blinking red lights’ problems, as well as farming Congress for more money).
They could both be untrue. Or only one of them. They could even have different degrees of truth. So many options, such little time.
Thats a nonsensical response. What exactly is the point that you’re trying to make?
It’s not nonsensical, you’re nonsensical. I’m just joining in and trying to be thorough about the hypotheticals we’re listing, here. 😬
Total coincidence that they said the same thing in the EU yesterday
Oh my gosh - maybe it’s a conspiracy!?!
Or maybe there really is an elevated risk of radicalized individuals trying to emulate a recent successful terrorist attack in Western nations.
Things can not be a coincidence for a variety of reasons, including the officially stated ones.
Which attack ?
What a moronic comment, there’s nothing coincidental about it; violence is on the rise globally
Far too many industries replaced people for automation and now it has made them vulnerable to outside threats.
Most people are employed, so that’s not it.
The problem is that so few people can live a comfortable life despite that.
