Shooting At NSA Headquarters -- News Roundup

Reuters: One dead, two hurt as vehicle tries to ram U.S. spy agency gates

(Reuters) - Two people tried to run their vehicle through the National Security Agency's gates near Washington on Monday before guards at the spy agency fatally shot one of them, said officials, who added there was no evidence of a link to terrorism.

The second occupant of the vehicle was also shot, according to one official, and a police officer was injured.

Both suspects, who were dressed in women's clothes and may be transgender, tried to drive their sport utility vehicle through an entrance at the agency's Fort Meade, Maryland, headquarters, U.S. law enforcement and security officials said.

More News On Today's Shooting At NSA Headquarters

Car that tried to crash NSA gate was stolen from Maryland hotel, police say -- L.A. Times
NSA: Car smashes into police vehicle at Fort Meade; 1 dead -- Washington Post/AP
One dead as police fire on car in incident at US spy HQ -- AFP
NSA Campus Intruders Foiled as Police Shoot, Kill One Individual -- Bloomberg
NSA: Car smashes into police vehicle at Fort Meade; 1 dead -- Washington Times
One shot dead at Fort Meade after trying to enter NSA gate -- CNN
Pair who tried to ram NSA gate may have been partying earlier, under influence of drugs -- FOX News
Hotel Partying Preceded Deadly Shooting at NSA Gate, Sources Say -- ABC News
A Bizarre Shooting at Fort Meade -- The Atlantic
Was Shooting at NSA a Wrong Turn Gone Bad? -- Shane Harris, Daily Beast
FBI: Fatal Shooting Near NSA 'Not Related to Terrorism' -- VOA

Shots Fired At NSA Headquarters Building

Photo courtesy NSA

Washington Post: Gunshots hit building at National Security Agency campus in Fort Meade

Gunshots struck a building at the National Security Agency campus on Tuesday, a U.S. Park Police spokeswoman said.

The Park Police said no injuries were reported, and police had no information about who might have fired at the building in Fort Meade, Md.

A National Security Agency spokeswoman declined to comment immediately on the incident.

More News On Shots Being Fired At The NSA Headquarters Building In Maryland

Police investigate report of shots near U.S. spy agency headquarters -- Reuters
Shots Fired Near NSA Headquarters, Building Damaged by Gunfire -- NBC
Shots reported near NSA HQ -- The Hill
NSA Headquarters Hit by Gunfire, No Injuries -- Sputnik

Poll: NSA Enjoys High Favorable Numbers From Young Adults

Dan Murphy, CSM: In post-Snowden era, NSA maintains surprisingly favorable image

But that doesn't mean it's popular. A Pew poll released today found that the only federal agency less well-liked among Americans was the Internal Revenue Service.

Update #1: Actually, young people like the NSA more than old people do, Pew says -- Fusion
Update #2: Shock poll: NSA gets highest favorable rating from … young adults? -- Hot Air

WNU editor: I am surprised by these results .... I expected the exact opposite. If more polls indicate the same thing .... this is then a trend, and one that will have implications on reforming NSA practices and on how much of a surveillance state do we really want. I am also surprised by the high favorable numbers for the CIA. The PEW poll is here.

U.S. Congress Is Still Ignorant About NSA Spying

Congress Still Has No Idea How Much The NSA Spies On Americans -- Conor Friedersdorf, The Atlantic

Adequate oversight is impossible when even diligent members of the Senate Intelligence Committee can't get basic facts about surveillance.

The biggest lie Americans are told about the NSA is that it is subject to "strict oversight." Listening to President Obama, Senator Dianne Feinstein, or most any high-ranking official in the national-security bureaucracy, one gets the impression that the Senate and House intelligence committees are keeping careful tabs on the most technologically empowered spy agency in human history.

The truth is that Congress is alarmingly ignorant about NSA spying. It's not all the national-security state's fault. There are too many issues for every legislator to master them all; surveillance policy is a particularly complicated; and national security is an area many in Congress undermine checks and balances by deferring to the president.

Read more ....

My Comment: I guess the NSA has now reached the level where it is too big to fail.