PRISM: Obama Acknowledges Secret NSA Data Mining Program, Denies Calls Are Listened To

President Obama held a press conference on Friday in which he acknowledged that the government is collecting data on phone calls. He also defended the program repeatedly.

When speaking to the media, President Obama stated that "nobody is listening to your telephone calls." The president also said that he has a personal stake in this issue, alluding to the fact that he will be a private citizen soon and that he would be a likely target of such a program.

President Obama also took a national security defensive stance on the issue, stating that "our goal is to stop folks from doing us harm." He also stated that the data mining program is under "congressional oversight" and "judicial oversight." President Obama also made reference to "modest encroachments on privacy," stressing that the government is "not looking at content."

What do you think of President Obama's speech? Do you believe President Obama when he says that the government is not looking at phone calls or emails? Why or why not? Sound off in the comments below.