greg's spell crawls in our stomach after we drop about it

presidents Johnson and Nixon had been convinced that Communist
: nations were bankrolling or directing the antiwar movement and had
: ordered investigations into this possibility.
:
: The CIA's investigations, which included operation CHAOS, found no
: evidence of external control or funding of the antiwar movement, the
: Black Panthers, or the Students for a Democratic Society.

* "The Rise of the Computer State", David Burnham, 1984
*
* p128: Federal authorities were concerned that foreign governments MIGHT
* try to influence civil rights leaders in the United States. The list
* of Americans monitored ballooned as political groups, celebrities and
* ordinary citizens were added to the 'watch lists'. The NSA surveillance
* was illegal and was instantly stopped [years later] when it appeared
* that Congress might learn about the eavesdropping.

Fear, loathing, suspicion and monitoring of civil rights movements.

All it took was the thought that foreigners were influencing Americans.

That's all it took to make the massive surveillance "legal".

Of course, massive surveillance means more than just surveillance:

* Main Justice, by Jim McGee and Brian Duff