he authorized telephone tapping on an unprecedented scale

[festival of snickers]

he authorized telephone tapping on an unprecedented scale. By such arrogant and intimidating means, he was determined to leave a more significant mark on public affairs than either his father or his brother had. But the result was a succession of foreign policy disasters that did his country untold damage in the eyes of the world.

George W. Bush? No, Neville Chamberlain.

http://www.amazon.com/Troublesome-Young-Men-Brought-Churchill/dp/03741 79549/ref=sr_11_1/002-4707797-7488048?ie=UTF8&qid=1190495436&sr=11-1