The USA Freedom Act was lauded as a great first step in trying to stop the abuses of the NSA. However, to even pass out of committee many changes altered the initial text of the bill. These changes didn’t improve privacy. And, unfortunately that’s just half of it. The amended bill which passed the House…
Last week I joined a group of distinguished scholars on this amicus brief filed in support of plaintiffs/appellants in Tuaua v. United States, the Samoan citizenship case now at the D.C. Circuit. As I’ve discussed before, the issue is whether the Constitution allows the United States to treat inhabitants of American Samoa (a U.S. territory) as something less than American citizens…
Whenever the NSA slips up and actually tells the truth, it becomes obvious why they are so deceptive: the truth reveals them to be frighteningly cold, callous and malicious. A rare occurrence of NSA truth-telling revealed the lethal implications of their metadata gathering program. According to an article by civil liberties advocate David Cole in…
ST. PAUL, Min., – May 22, 2014. A bipartisan bill which bans Minnesota law enforcement from obtaining cellphone location tracking information without a warrant was signed into law by Gov. Mark Dayton last Friday. SF2466 was introduced by Sen. Brandon Petersen (R-Andover) and cosponsored by two democrat and two republican senators. It passed the House…
A May 16th Food and Drug Administration news release reported that U.S. Marshals had seized more than $11,185,000 worth of unapproved drugs. They did this at the request of the FDA because the medications are unapproved and misbranded drugs under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. The FDA complaint for forfeiture in paragraph 3…
A Los Angeles TV news reporter said a California bill to prohibit state cooperation with unconstitutional and illegal spying “could be huge.” Known as the 4th Amendment Protection Act, SB828 passed the California Senate 29-0. “It’s a bill that basically tells the federal government, ‘If you are going to spy on American cell phones without…
When you boil it all down, the law doesn't rest on enforcement. It roots itself in consent and acquiescence. When enough people refuse to comply, the law crumbles.
If you think a handful of unelected, unaccountable politically-connected lawyers are the only ones who can determine what’s constitutional and what’s not, you prefer the Iranian system of government to the Constitutional government of the Founders.
SPRINGFIELD, Ill., May 21, 2014 – An Illinois bill which would ban law enforcement from obtaining cellphone location tracking information without a warrant passed the state House on Monday. The vote was 111-0. It had previously passed the Senate by a 52-0 vote, but since the House made technical amendments to the bill it goes…
Kansas lawmakers chickened out. The Kansas legislature had a golden opportunity to make a bold statement and effectively nullify federal regulation of the Lesser Prairie Chicken and the Greater Prairie Chicken within the borders of their state. The Senate Committee on Federal and State Affairs introduced SB276 early this year. The legislation built upon a…