U.S.: We Didn’t Tap French Phones

U.S. intelligence’s credibility overseas has been just a little bit tarnished, so they must see why everyone would rush to believe the Le Monde report, right? National intelligence director James Clapper said Tuesday that the report in French newspaper that the U.S. bugged French phones contained “misleading information.” In particular, Clapper said the claim that the U.S. recorded 70 million calls between French citizens in a 30-day period is “false.” The fallout in the international community over the spying allegations could be problematic for the U.S.: after allegations that the U.S. spied on Brazilian and Mexican leaders, Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff canceled a state visit to Washington, and Mexico’s Enrique Pena Nieto said the U.S. promised him an inquiry.