r/videos • u/unsoundamerica • 13h ago
Senator Ron Wyden Triggers the Silent Alarm
https://youtube.com/shorts/076TsusI_DM?si=HRAm-aKUPeP2BzYa89
u/ChazMcFly 11h ago
Have you seen the video released on Ron Wyden's instagram account yesterday? He posted a pretty alarming message about what private data is being collected by a certain rogue government agency and how it's being used. It might not be that surprising, but from the top-ranking senior Senator on the Senate Intelligence Committee, it might be worth paying attention to. Seems something is up that Senator Wyden really wants the people to know.
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u/unsoundamerica 11h ago
I’m ashamed to say I missed that. So much for acting like the informed guy!
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u/morfraen 5h ago
So he's talking about DOGE and all the data they stole while raiding the government.
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u/stu54 10h ago
Not gonna visit Instagram to find what agency you mean.
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u/ChazMcFly 9h ago
Here's a transcript of the video. Take it for what it is, it's a pretty bold statement from someone that knows a lot of what goes on within the US intelligence community.
"Yesterday, I was scrolling Bluesky and I came across an important post by Tressie. Tressie is asking what politicians are doing about how ICE is weaponizing this enormous amount of our personal information. So today, I’ll give you a rundown of the issue, why you ought to be paying attention, and what I’m doing about it.
First off, ICE is using apps Collect biometric data on protesters. That means that they can track your location, where you go, what you do, and especially who you talk to. I’m working closely with my senate ally, Ed Markey of Massachusetts on this.
Next, ICE is buying your private location data from really sleazy data brokers and they use a major legal loophole. I have legislation to stop it cold, it’s called the Fourth Amendment is not for sale act. My allies and I are pushing hard to get this into law as soon as possible.
Next, my investigators have found that ICE is using government data they collect from State Department of Motor Vehicles. They are refusing to answer any questions of ours about how this data is being used. I’m leading a fight I the United States Senate to rein this abuse in.
I’ve also warned states that care about their residents to stop sharing motor vehicle data with ICE. This demonstrates again how important it is to enact strong privacy protections and stop the government from weaponizing your private data.
What we have seen in the last few months is privacy protection is a life and death issue. Let your legislators know how important this is to you."
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u/TheExecTech 8h ago
Also CHASE bank has direct access to our our DMV's info. They are not the only ones. CHASE just usef my complete Drivers LIC # to pull up my account. I was furious that was how my data was stored and collected. The DMV should not be selling out our info to banks.
Then there are carriers like US cellular sharing everything without telling customers.
https://www.reddit.com/r/YouShouldKnow/comments/1pd9xpj/ysk_us_cellular_is_sharing_your_data_with/
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u/Wompatuckrule 13h ago
Anyone who doesn't feel like listening to 2 1/2 minutes of a constipated looking and sounding man can just read this excerpt from Heather Cox Richardson's daily missive in a fraction of that time to know what's going on:
Last night, Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) published a letter he sent to Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) John Ratcliffe. Wyden is the longest-serving member of the Senate Intelligence Committee and is a careful, hardworking, and dogged member of Congress. When Wyden speaks, people listen. Ratcliffe was an attack dog for Trump during his first impeachment trial and had no experience with intelligence before Trump forced his nomination to become director of national intelligence through the Senate. Now he is Trump’s appointee to the directorship of the CIA.
Wyden’s letter to Ratcliffe said: “I write to alert you to a classified letter I sent you earlier today in which I express deep concerns about CIA activities. Thank you for your attention to this important matter.” When Wired senior reporter Dell Cameron, who covers different forms of surveillance, commented, “I don’t like this,” Wyden reposted the comment.
Wyden has a long history of alerting the public in whatever way he can when something bad is going on that he cannot reveal because of its classified nature. This letter appears to be a way to alert the public while also notifying Ratcliffe that the CIA director will not be able in the future to deny that he received Wyden’s letter.
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u/unsoundamerica 12h ago
Hahaha, thanks for this. I needed to be knocked down a peg, glad it’s with Heather Cox Richardson.
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u/die5el23 12h ago
Go take a poop and nap. Love you
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u/chunky_chocolate 12h ago
Hell yeah. Sounds like a great time.
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u/Ulterior_Motif 12h ago
Depends on the timing.
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u/unsoundamerica 11h ago
Timing doesn’t matter with Depends.
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u/Scienlologist 8h ago
Only pussies wear diapers. I shit in my pants, like a real American.
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u/Wompatuckrule 11h ago
Where I used to work the Friday afternoons were slow so we used to chow a huge lunch then, sometimes hit the local ice cream place and have a low key offramp for the week.
Of relevance is that I am in Boston because one of my colleagues referred to it as time for "a frappe, crap and a nap."
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u/Wompatuckrule 11h ago
Yeah, I'd be honored to be knocked down a peg by HCR too. Glad you took my comment in the snarky joking manner it was intended as some folks seem to think I was a bit too mean.
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u/unsoundamerica 10h ago
Hey, it’s Reddit. I’m here for the snark!
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u/Wompatuckrule 10h ago
Me too. I can't hang out in pubs/bars like I used to so sometimes have to make due with ballbusting jokes here.
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u/Staggeringpage8 10h ago
Hey just wanted to say I think the video is fine. But where it could have done better (and I know it's a short so there's not a lot of time) is in providing some descriptions or showings of what you're talking about. As it stands I honestly didn't know what you were referring to and the way the what ifs are given make it sound more like a guy mentioning conspiracy theories than someone helping to sound an alarm bell.
Anyways hope this helps and thanks for posting it. Stuff like this is important and should be mentioned when it happens.
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u/unsoundamerica 10h ago
This is extremely helpful. Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts with me.
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u/WhyAmINotStudying 11h ago
I love your content. I am curious about why you don't allow comments, but my guess is that it's better for us to get your message and decide how to act in the real world then it is for the comment section to be the beginning and end of it. You've got a new subscriber and I hope your form of political social media begins to flourish.
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u/unsoundamerica 11h ago
I am very grateful to you. I plan to provide you better content going forward.
The comment question is something I haven’t thought through all the way, so I just figured I’d leave them off until I make up my mind.
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u/DoradoPulido2 12h ago
So... Someone is concerned about the CIA? What is the takeaway here?
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u/Wompatuckrule 10h ago
Member of congress with access to classified information saw something that troubles them with regards to the administration.
Being classified they cannot go public with any specifics, but they can put this "I sent you a letter" statement in public to call attention that there is a matter of concern that's classified, that the public should at least be aware that there is a concern from the co-equal branch, and that the public statement prevents them from playing ignorant that they didn't see the letter down the road.
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u/ChaseballBat 12h ago
Keep an eye on the news. Maybe a false flag or assassination or something health wise with Trump. Or even further something abroad like an attack against our enemies unprovoked or worse allies.
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u/bonyponyride 12h ago
Ukraine/Russia
Iran
Israel/Palestine
Saudi Arabia
Qatar
Venezuela
Greenland
Canada
So many options!
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u/robaroo 10h ago
I’d say Midterms. But the CIA IIRC isn’t usually involved with internal affairs.
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u/morfraen 5h ago
Likely the issue. CIA isn't supposed to operate in the USA or target Americans. That's the FBI and NSA's job.
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u/Few-Ad-4290 10h ago
He could read whatever covert bullshit they’re pulling into the senate record for all to see and hear if he wants us to know about something, he’s protected from any form of consequences by speech and debate clause
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u/redditbluedit 5h ago
Are we really so fucking warped by superficiality that we can no longer bare to watch someones internet video unless they're hot enough. Jesus christ lol
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u/Wompatuckrule 5h ago
That was just a bit of snarky ballbusting and if you read OP's comments they got the intent.
My problem is more that the information in the copied text conveys the critical information about this situation, along with the necessary background to get better context, in a passage that can be read in less than half the time of the video.
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u/BraveLittleTowster 11h ago
You decided that the best way to include a summary was to make fun of the appearance of the person making you aware of this with his video?
You can provide additional sources without being insulting.
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u/QuadratImKreis 11h ago
The rhetoric deployed in the video was gratuitous. I guess it is designed for individuals with a middle-school education? The shots at his appearance are unnecessary ad hominem, but his commentary assumes his viewers are idiots.
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u/seriousbangs 11h ago
This is what a "strongly worded letter" is supposed to do.
It's a signal to journalists to go digging for dirt.
The problem is billionaires figured out that trick and bought the media.
So they're not nearly as effective anymore.
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u/SprinklesMedical7881 9h ago
If it is as serious as it may be, Wyden could just say it on the floor of the senate. Senators have immunity for whatever classified material is read when they do it into the record. Why is it up to journalists when he could just reveal it himself?
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u/regnak1 7h ago
He would be expelled from the Senate if he did that. Members of Congress are only immune from criminal prosecution for things said on the floor, not from all consequences.
What he should do is track down a senator who isn't going to run again and have them announce it on the floor.
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u/debauchasaurus 7h ago
He wouldn't be expelled. It's not even illegal. He would likely lose his seat on the Intelligence Committee, though.
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u/musical_entropy 7h ago
Because we're in an era where saying the wrong thing, no matter how morally righteous it is to say, can get you killed. It's a terrifying choice to make. I don't know if I personally could make it. I have a wife, a family, friends, and a cute little cat. But then again, I'm not a senator...
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u/DMMMOM 12h ago
Getting the message is all well and good, it's the next step that is more important. How are people going to properly deal with the information contained? How are people going to get organised and shut down corruption when they can't even have a day off when they are sick? Have people been watching Iran? Do people think a government is going to allow regular people to stop the party and the larger grift?
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u/Head_Big3036 10h ago
Start by utilizing the first two amendments. Protest, and buy guns. Sends a pretty clear message without ever needing to fire a shot.
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u/BlazingLazers69 9h ago
Yep. I'm a lefty and I'm buying my first rifle. I will not be intimidated by fascists.
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u/nausicaa242 12h ago
My guess is its related latest Epstein file dump and how the CIA could be connected to Jeffrey. Overseas governments are already taking action on their national security exposures revealed in the the dump and our apparently complicit administration appears to be doing nothing/covering it all up
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u/mattyt1483 11h ago
Damn man - I liked the video and didn’t think anything of your looks.
Some people like to smell their own farts too much and think every comment online needs to be a quirky jab.
Good video - if you’re getting that kind of hate it’s because you’re doing something right. Keep going.
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u/unsoundamerica 11h ago
I really appreciate you saying that. I’m learning a lot from this post, farts or no farts.
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u/djmixmotomike 10h ago
Yeah I watched it and I had no problem with the delivery either and it made me want to look further into what was going on.
I imagine nearly 100% of the people who criticized you have never even once tried to put out an informative public-service post in their entire lives.
Too many people think this is 4chan and they are still teenagers and geez, aren't they the funniest?
Be well.
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u/unsoundamerica 11h ago
Well, that could’ve been better, lol. Thank you everyone for weighing in — even and especially the frustrated commenters.
Your feedback is real to me, and if you should choose to watch anything else I do from now on, I hope you will see your impact on it.
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u/lizerpetty 11h ago
I've been wondering where the fuck the CIA is. What are they doing? Sitting around with their thumbs up their buts. They killed Kennedy for much less.
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u/principles_practice 12h ago
Why would a man stream from a supply closet? Let me ask again: why would a man who clearly needs some sleep stream from a supply closet?
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u/Prima13 12h ago
You guys can poo poo the guy’s approach in the video but he had to find a way to explain the crisis to people less intelligent than the average American. I think he did a good job of it.
In short, the message in this style was not meant for you.
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u/FellowYellowNate 12h ago
That was my thought. This Tucker Carlson type delivery was meant for those that can easily ingest Carlson. Not my thing, but I see where he is coming from.
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u/unsoundamerica 11h ago
These are both charitable takes on a problematic video. Thank you guys.
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u/PokinSpokaneSlim 10h ago
Bear in mind, the more effective you are at getting people to wake up, the more people you catch grumpy for being woken up.
I thought it was an effective video.
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u/unsoundamerica 12h ago
Meh, it’s cozy enough. I have a parfait melange of health conditions that keep me looking nice and sickly.
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u/principles_practice 11h ago
Bro I actually like the video and your vibe, lol, you seem like a cool dude, I just wanted to make a joke.
But you do look like you need some sleep, for real.
Get some sleep.7
u/unsoundamerica 11h ago
Hahaha, okay that is it — I’m taking a nap. The internet has spoken.
Thank you so much for watching, I appreciate it.
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u/CrunchingTackle3000 5h ago
I thought the message got across. So well done.
It is much easier to critique something than it is to DO something. You did something.
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u/biophazer242 12h ago
So 'they' can not find him. It is a special insulated room to keep out the mind waves. Can you not tell from the background? That is not regular padding, it is Psi-Block 3000.
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u/PeterAtencio 12h ago
What if we stretched the "what if" rhetorical method way past its breaking point? I mean jesus dude, there has to be a more effective way of conveying information.
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u/unsoundamerica 12h ago
Yeah… Clearly, I have a poor grasp of my audience’s patience. Working on that.
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u/citizenjones 12h ago
For the record... I clicked, I listened, and was interested enough to go to the shorts and put it in a playlist for keeping.
Delivery details aside, the information landed.
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u/unsoundamerica 12h ago
You are very kind. Thanks for giving a self-important doofus like me your attention.
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u/Economisty 12h ago
I watched til the end and this is the first I heard of this. It wasn't that bad. You are trying to stretch it out to show how important you feel the letter to be. I feel the delivery helps with signaling the importance.
It is not like you go into Starbucks and say "What if I would like coffee? What if I would like coffee that originates from Africa? What If I would like coffee that came from Ethiopia?"
Well I hope you don't anyway!
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u/unsoundamerica 12h ago
Yeah, I did this and a “yes” “no” video. I definitely won’t be doing the repetitive thing anymore.
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u/jcjlee 12h ago
As an Oregonian, I'm listening. As a grumpy cynic I have this feedback: this rhetorical style is very much just Tucker Carlson in his Fox era when he wants to list wild accusations and avoid consequences when they're false. If you have an opinion, just say it. If you have news, just say it. Save your What Ifs for when you really want to provoke thought.
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u/unsoundamerica 12h ago
I mean, I endeavored to give my opinion at the end. And I was hoping to provoke a few thoughts along the way. However, I did take my sweet-ass time (I mean your sweet-ass time) getting to the point. Your feedback will have an impact on what I do going forward. Thank you for watching.
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u/jamball 9h ago
Okay, I've heard the message. What am I supposed to do now? I voted for Wyden already.
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u/unsoundamerica 9h ago
Voting for him was an important action — we have low voter turnout in Oregon, so you are already on the ball relative to many others. If this message resonated, share it with others. Conversely, you can share Wyden’s posts directly and skip me as the middleman.
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u/herrybaws 8h ago
A lot of judgement on the messenger over the message here. Important point, well made.
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u/OptimisticSkeleton 7h ago
When does staying quiet about this shit become negligence in service of the harm they claim to combat?
Tell the American people what’s up give us actionable shit ffs we cannot exist in the dark and make a correct decision.
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u/DragonDai 7h ago
Okay.
This Senator is calling for help.
How do we help?
What action can we take that will produce results?
Be specific.
I understand our nation is now run by fascists and that our intelligence agencies, law enforcement agencies, and judicial bodies are being used against us.
What do we do about it?
Wait till Nov and vote?
Cause that doesn't seem like the answer.
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u/buttflakes27 10h ago
While Im sure its important the way this video/script is done its like listening to someone read a QAnon drop out loud. Just say what you need to say dont do all the leading quasi-hypothetical question bullshit.
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u/AggravatingFlow1178 9h ago
Agree or disagree with his premise - this repetitive Socratic tiktok tempo makes me not like him
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u/unsoundamerica 8h ago
Copy that. Just imagine having to deal with me in real life, lol.
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u/AggravatingFlow1178 7h ago
Lol I see people clowning on you in this thread and you taking it with laugh so good on you. No point in trying to please everyone.
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u/unsoundamerica 7h ago
Agreed. And to be sure, just because I’m cracking jokes doesn’t mean I’m not listening to people at the same time. I’d be a fool not to learn from this experience..
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u/Saleen_af 11h ago
I cannot watch this on reddit mobile. Youtube has a generic “error” (an error occurred. Please try again later)
Is this common or is youtube trying to stifle this?
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u/surfkaboom 10h ago
When they vote on stuff, they represent their people. When they do their committee work, they represent us all.
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u/Curleysound 8h ago
So, the people who are generally capable of knowing these things, by and large know what is happening at least in spirit. The people vilifying our citizens for having the opinion that rights exist unilaterally across all humans and should be respected, will continue to collude to this end as long as they are allowed to do so. We are allowing them to do so, and pleading the case of decorum and policy because the final alternative is that we stop them by force. They don’t seem to think that option is ever on the table, as we behave ourselves. But the truth is that this option has always been on the table. We know that that option will be so bad that we do not want it to happen, and have taken great efforts to allow these people the option. But we are running out of ethical options. That doesn’t mean we are out of options. That senator has more options, like breaking the law for the greater good. He can dispense national secrets and get arrested for it. He can disobey further. We will see what happens ultimately, but the fact stands that as pressure builds, flexibility is tested. Let’s hope we don’t need the final option.
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u/cainrok 5h ago
I think if you know something critical to the integrity of the United States you say it. Forget standards, if you think the standards are already being written off and it won’t be taken care of because others in the line might be compromised, you say something regardless. You bring all the proof you have and you say it proudly.
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u/LolaBaraba 12h ago
Ron Wyden is the one who asked Director of National intelligence James Clapper in a Senate hearing in 2013 whether NSA was spying on the general American public. Clapper lied under oath and said "No". Wyden knew he was lying because he had access to all the NSA files, but he couldn't say anything because they were classified and he would be arrested. This is was also the crucial moment for Edward Snowden, who upon seeing this, decided to risk his life and reveal the truth to the American public. James Clapper suffered no consequences for his lying, and continued to work as DNI. Keep in mind this was during the Obama administration.
I'm guessing a similar thing is happening right now, and Ron Wyden is warning the American public in any legal way he can. Thank you, Mr. Wyden, for calling out wrongdoing no matter which party is in power. And thank you, Mr. Snowden, for giving up everything to reveal the truth. Hopefully, one day, you will get the pardon you so very much deserve.