Unconstitutional: NSA Spying
When people tell you that mass warrantless surveillance by the NSA - or any other agency - is constitutional, they’re either ignorant or lying.
Michigan Action Alert: Help Protect the 4th Amendment, Support HB5162
Michigan HB5162 would deny state-level support and resources to the NSA and all federal agencies involved in warrantless spying. It must pass in the House Oversight And Ethics Committee to receive a vote in the full House. PLEASE TAKE THE FOLLOWING ACTIONS to support this important bill. 1. Call the House Oversight And Ethics Committee Chair,…
The Federal Government Fails to Stop Federal Spying. Again
Federal courts once again failed to protect Americans from ubiquitous NSA spying. On Friday, US District Judge T.S. Ellis III dismissed a suit against the NSA brought by the ACLU on behalf of Wikimedia, the parent company that publishes Wikipedia. The judge held the company lacks standing to sue because it cannot definitively prove the…
Ruling Shows Federal Courts Can’t be Trusted to Stop the Surveillance State
WASHINGTON (Aug. 30, 2015) – On Friday, a federal court overturned a lower court decision and quashed a lawsuit brought against an NSA bulk surveillance program by a conservative activist and civil-liberties groups. The ruling demonstrates the near impossibility of stopping the NSA through legal action. A three-judge D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals panel determined…
Failing Constitution 101, Making Stalin Proud: Chris Christie on the 4th Amendment
The dust-up between New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul over presidential fidelity to the Constitution — particularly the Fourth Amendment — was the most illuminating two minutes of the Republican debate last week. It is a well-regarded historical truism that the Fourth Amendment was written by victims of government snooping, the…
Senators Fall Short with Federal Plan to Stop NSA Spying
Three leading anti-NSA senators, Rand Paul (R-KY), Mark Udall (D-CO) and Ron Wyden (D-OR), recently penned an op/ed in the Los Angeles Times talking about the need for bipartisan reform to save the 4th Amendment and rein in government surveillance. They correctly identify the problems, but their solutions leave much to be desired. In their…