> So it is impossible to really know if the surveillance does anything. We know that it has a chilling effect, and the likelihood of it actually performing the

> So it is impossible to really know if the surveillance does anything. We know that it has a chilling effect, and the likelihood of it actually performing the stated mission is really low. We've had several massive leaks, but the one place that evidence would have definitely shown up would have been the DOS cable leak - because it was an unfiltered dump. While SIGINT certainly shouldn't appear in anything below top-secret, there would be hints. The stratfor leak would have contained hints as well, due to all the candid emails discussing intel from gov sources (see access to OBL intel cache for an example). Also, the FBI would likely brag about more than their sorry list of terrorist entrapment cases. One can't make the claim that operational SIGINT is so special that it never leaks, because that is one of the classified emails found on Clinton's private server - emailed from a former government worker that shouldn't have had access in the first place.