Tom

“The members of the committee were aware of the programmes concerned, having been briefed on them in classified sessions. The question was, in a sense, a trap, aimed at bouncing Clapper into revealing more than he wanted. But for all that, as a member of the executive branch, he is under a solemn duty not to mislead the legislature—or to mislead citizens who are observing its questioning of their government officials. For whatever mixture of motives or confusion, he breached that duty. He apologised later, pleading confusion not deliberate deceit. Though charges that he 'perjured' himself or deliberately lied to Congress are an exaggeration, in his place I think I would have resigned.”
― Edward Lucas, The Snowden Operation: Inside the West's Greatest Intelligence Disaster