[font class="story"]Lol, no kidding? Really? Why, I'm shocked, just shocked, I tell you!!!
[/font][hr style="width: 100%; height: 2px;"][font style="font-weight: bold;" class="headline" size="4"]Justice: FBI 'Misused' Patriot Act Powers[/font]
[font class="story"]WASHINGTON (AP) -- The FBI improperly and, in some cases, illegally used the USA Patriot Act to secretly obtain personal information about people in the United States, a Justice Department audit concluded Friday. [/font][font class="story"] And for three years the FBI underreported to Congress how often it forced businesses to turn over the customer data, the audit found. [/font][/p][font class="story"] Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, who oversees the FBI, described the problems cited in the report as unacceptable and left open the possibility of criminal charges. He ordered further investigation. [/font][/p][font class="story"] "Once we get that information, we'll be in a better position to [span style="text-decoration: line-through;"]cover it up[/span] assess what kinds of steps should be taken," Gonzales told reporters following a speech to privacy officials. [/font][/p][font class="story"] "There is no excuse [span style="text-decoration: line-through;"]we can come up with yet[/span] for the mistakes that have been made, and we are going to make things right as quickly as possible," the attorney general said. [/font][/p][font class="story"] FBI Director Robert Mueller said he was to blame for not putting more safeguards into place. [/font][/p][font class="story"] "I am to be held accountable, [span style="text-decoration: line-through;"]but I won't be punished, rest assured[/span]" Mueller said. He told reporters he would correct the problems and did not plan to resign. [/font][/p][font class="story"] "The inspector general went and did the audit that I should have put in place many years ago," Mueller said. [/font][/p][font class="story"] The audit by Justice Department Inspector General Glenn A. Fine found that FBI agents sometimes demanded personal data on individuals without proper authorization. The 126-page audit also found the FBI improperly obtained telephone records in non-emergency circumstances.[/font][/p][font class="story"]Full story: [/font][a href="vny!://www.breitbart.com/news/2007/03/09/D8NORU3G0.html"]vny!://www.breitbart.com/news/2007/03/09/D8NORU3G0.html[/a]
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