Rep. Jason Chaffetz: Having Best Intel Doesn't Mean Sacrificing Liberty

It's a "slippery slope" to balance the need for individual privacy with gathering intelligence to prevent terrorist acts, such as Wednesday's attack in Paris by gunmen with ties to al-Qaida, Rep. Jason Chaffetz told MSNBC's "Morning Joe."

Chaffetz said lawmakers would debate how to create that balance, but maintained he didn't support "giving up all of our liberty in the name of security."

"No doubt this is going to continue to be a raging debate. I just say it's a very slippery slope. You've got to find the proper balance," the Utah Republican said Friday. "If you're a suspicionless American, I'm not willing to give up every liberty in the name of security."

It was important to "call terrorism for what is it — it is terrorism," Chaffetz maintained, adding it was crucial to "make sure that we have the very best intelligence we possibly can." However, he stressed getting that intelligence should not interfere with the privacy rights of Americans.

"Should we track every American just to make sure they're more safe? Should we put a video camera on every corner to see what everybody is doing 24/7? I don't think so. That's not who we are in the United States of America. It's a tough equation.

"I don't think the federal government should be peeking at my emails. I don't think they should be looking in my living room, and I don't want them tracking me when I go the shopping mall," he said.

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