NSA says data mining helped thwart terror

Phone records obtained by the government through a secret surveillance program disclosed last week helped prevent "dozens" of terrorist events, the director of the National Security Agency told a Senate hearing Wednesday.
Army Gen. Keith Alexander said in response to questions from Sen. Patrick Leahy, a Vermont Democrat, that he believed the program, under Section 215 of the Patriot Act, was "critical" to helping the intelligence community corroborate information on possible threats.