Briefs

WASHINGTON, Dec. 24 (UPI) -- The U.S. National Security Agency has been involved in "data mining" of telephone calls and other communications, the New York Times reports. The Bush administration has acknowledged monitoring communications into and out of the United States without warrants since the Times revealed the practice. But President Bush insists that the monitoring was legal and limited to people with known ties to al-Qaida.

The Times said the monitoring was much larger than the government has admitted, and involves tapping into the main communication arteries of the United States.

Here is the rest of the story.