bugging

And so, routinely, when Democratic officeholders say that their agitated constituents should leave them alone and “call the Republicans,” it amounts to a brushoff that can be translated from politician-talk as “Stop bugging us already.”

“You couldn’t go anywhere without one of those groups bugging you, all in the name of supposedly protecting you,” Darwish said.

Mr Brilliant believes he was not immune to Al Fayed’s extensive use of bugging and surveillance, carried out by the Harrods owner’s large team of security guards.

“My knee was bugging me, so I was like, ‘Let’s get an MRI just to check,’ and sure enough, I need it fixed, so just add it to the list.

It was vast and costly, and employed techniques typically associated with counter-terrorism, including surveillance and bugging.