01.08.06
Interview with NSA Whistleblower Russell Tice
Transcript of a Jan. 7, 2006 Democracy Now! interview with Russell Tice.
[In late December, 2005,] “a former N.S.A. intelligence officer publicly announced he wants to testify before Congress. His name is Russell Tice. For the past two decades he has worked in the intelligence field, both inside and outside of government, most recently with the National Security Agency and the Defense Intelligence Agency. He was fired in May 2005, after he spoke out as a whistleblower.
In his letter, Tice wrote, quote, ‘It’s with my oath as a U.S. intelligence officer weighing heavy on my mind that I wish to report to Congress acts I believe are unlawful and unconstitutional. The freedom of the American people cannot be protected when our constitutional liberties are ignored and our nation has decayed into a police state.’”
When asked by host Amy Goodman why he was now publicly coming forward, he said one reason was “there was a certain roadblock that was sort of lifted that allowed me to do this, and I can’t explain, but I will to Congress if allowed to.”
