"The invasion of privacy has gone too far" - Former President Jimmy Carter.

Oh, President Carter you have no idea of the damage they have done. Not just in the surveillance, but in the efforts to prevent their unconstitutional and unconscionable actions from being exposed.

I've had a few chances to speak with Former President Carter in the past. He was always a friendly and sincere man. No matter where the encounter took place Jimmy Carter was personal and genuine. Whether at Independence Hall in Philadelphia or an early morning in Chicago's O'Hare Airport, he was just himself.

A truly respectable quality. A truly respectable leader.

And in an age of political slander and dirty tricks, I am reminded of what was done to President Carter on his last day in office. They negotiated with terrorists in an attempt to humiliate the man. They failed.

You can never take away the quality of character demonstrated by President Carter. They only demonstrated how low they would venture using innocent people as political tools.

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From Der Spiegel Online

NSA affair: Ex-President Carter Condemns U.S. Snooping By Gregor Peter Schmitz, from Atlanta 17.07.2013 – 13:59 Uhr Ex-President Carter: "The invasion of privacy has gone too far" The Obama administration has tried to placate Europe's anger over their spying programs. Not so ex-President Jimmy Carter: The Democrat Carter sharply criticized U.S. intelligence policy. The disclosure by the whistleblower Snowden was "useful." Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter was in the wake of the NSA spying scandal criticized the American political system. "America has no functioning democracy," Carter said Tuesday at a meeting of the "Atlantic Bridge" in Atlanta. Previously, the Democrat had been very critical of the practices of U.S. intelligence. "I think the invasion of privacy has gone too far," Carter told CNN. "And I think that is why the secrecy was excessive." With regard to the NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, Carter said his revelations were "likely to be useful because they have informed the public." Carter has repeatedly warned that the moral authority of the United States has declined sharply due to excessive curtailment of civil rights. Last year he wrote in an article in the "New York Times" that new U.S. laws have allowed "never before seen breaches of our privacy by the government."