Ask HN: Real-world consequences to the NSA of their leaks

So, the NSA has said that the Snowden leaks will compromise much of their information gathering. However, I fail to see how. Here are my points:

Now that there is an open discussion, some people may be able to prove that the information gathering is illegal. However, the government has the power to simply change the law at will. If we can prove that the government is willing to break the law, then I don't think it's too fanciful to think that they are willing to simply change laws to fit their needs.

The NSA clearly doesn't really care about public opinion. They have one of the largest operating budgets in the world, and the American people are literally scared of anything foreign or that our government tells us is a threat. Each time a new threat is identified the NSA gets another $150,000,00 in operating budget (this is an example, but it's probably close to true). So, with that kind of budget, and with the obvious fact that they take great delight in the sorts of technical achievements that they make (and I don't think anyone can deny that they have indeed made great technical achievements, dubious as they are), why should they care if the American people are happy about it? There's nothing we can really do.

Other governments are angry at the scope of the snooping but, again, why should the NSA really care? They are backed up both by the strongest economy in the world and by the strongest military in the world, and I'm guessing they are staffed by the smartest and best hackers in the world.

So, are there any actual, real-world threats to the NSA that will be empowered by the leaks? Or are they just annoyed that they got caught, because that was one of their bragging points?