Unveiling the Veil: How Obama’s Secrecy Surpasses Bush’s Administration

In the wake of Edward Snowden’s revelations about the National Security Agency’s (NSA) sweeping surveillance programs, the conversation about government secrecy and constitutional rights has reached a fever pitch. Former NSA senior executive and whistleblower Thomas Drake offers a unique perspective on this topic, arguing that the Obama administration’s embrace and expansion of secret surveillance dwarfs the infamous practices of the Bush era.

A New Era of Surveillance

On July 4, 2013, nationwide protests known as Restore the Fourth rallies demanded government accountability following Snowden’s disclosures of mass spying. Thomas Drake, who was previously charged under the Espionage Act for exposing unconstitutional NSA activities yet ultimately had charges dropped, appeared at these events and subsequent interviews to defend whistleblowers like Snowden.

Drake emphasizes that Snowden’s revelations reveal illegal and unconstitutional overreach—far beyond what Congress authorized. For example, the NSA’s daily collection of 100 million Verizon phone records under secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) orders constitutes a modern “general warrant,” an affront to Fourth Amendment protections. He highlights how the government’s secret interpretations of laws like the Patriot Act and the FISA Amendments Act permitted surveillance on tens of millions of innocent American citizens without probable cause or individualized suspicion.

Hypocrisy in the Political Sphere

Drake points out a glaring hypocrisy in how critics approach surveillance disclosures today versus during the Bush administration. In 2005-2006, extensive criticism and calls for impeachment were directed at President George W. Bush for similar constitutional violations. Yet many of those voices have since gone silent or submissive in the face of the Obama administration not only accepting but vastly expanding these secretive powers.

This shift reveals a political double standard. Those who attack Snowden—as some progressives and mainstream media figures have—are targeting the messenger rather than confronting the uncomfortable truths about unprecedented government secrecy. According to Drake, this “politics of personal destruction” allows the public to overlook how President Obama’s surveillance state surpasses that of his predecessor.

Beyond Domestic Spying: An International Dimension

Critics frequently condemn Snowden for exposing U.S. spying on foreign governments such as China, Russia, and Brazil. Drake defends these disclosures, explaining that espionage between countries is longstanding and routine. The shocking development, however, lies in the NSA’s scale and scope of surveilling ordinary citizens both at home and abroad without suspicion. He underscores that the NSA’s reach violates the privacy rights not only of Americans but also those of foreign nationals, turning all individuals into “foreigners” under constant surveillance.

Drake reveals that while government spying on diplomats and military targets has historical precedent, the NSA’s massive digital dossiers on millions of innocent people mark a fundamentally new and dangerous dimension of state power.

The Call for Revolution

Drawing from his Cold War expertise studying East Germany’s infamous Stasi surveillance apparatus, Drake warns against the perils of a surveillance state that knows everything about everyone. He illustrates this with a striking privacy exercise: few people would entrust a complete record of their lives and passwords to a stranger, so why accept the government collecting that information secretly and without consent?

Drake shares his personal ordeal under the Obama-era surveillance state. After blowing the whistle on NSA abuses, he endured invasive monitoring, including FBI agents watching his physical movements and efforts to discredit him. His experience underscores the tangible consequences of unchecked government spying.

For Drake, the solution lies in a “new American Revolution” resisting the surveillance state’s encroachment on fundamental constitutional liberties. He calls on citizens to recognize the grave dangers of mass, suspicionless government surveillance—an Orwellian reality that threatens the core of democratic society.

Conclusion

Thomas Drake’s insights reveal that the secrecy and surveillance culture institutionalized and expanded under the Obama administration arguably outstrips the abuses exposed during the Bush years. Far from protecting liberty, this surveillance apparatus encroaches aggressively on privacy rights both domestically and globally. As debates over whistleblowers like Snowden continue, Drake’s perspective challenges Americans to confront uncomfortable truths and demand accountability, transparency, and a restoration of constitutional protections in the digital age. The veil of secrecy has been lifted—but whether society will respond with meaningful reform remains to be seen.