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Homeland Security’s Intelligence Overreach: Two Cases Illustrate Risks to Civil Society:
Two stories this week show how the Department of Homeland Security is deploying its intelligence apparatus against activists, journalists, and human rights lawyers. While this type of political surveillance rightly raises serious concerns, it is hardly surprising given the immense growth in DHS’s intelligence gathering programs during and since the Obama administration, and the lack of meaningful standards, safeguards, and oversight of their operation.
[...]NBC7 San Diego published a leaked copy of a set of slides titled “San Diego Sector Foreign Operations Branch: Migrant Caravan FY-2019, Suspected Organizers, Coordinators, Instigators and Media,” dated January 9, 2019. The document, which appears under a U.S.-Mexican seal, is essentially a surveillance target list with photographs of 59 people, 40 of whom are identified as U.S. citizens, all of whom seem to have some connection to migrant caravans heading from Central America to the United States. “Alerts” have been placed against the information of 43 people, including 28 Americans. DHS kept dossiers on the targets as well, including one that was shared with NBC 7 on[sic] Nicole Ramos, an attorney with a legal center for migrants and refugees in Tijuana, Mexico.
DHS claims it was tracking people who were in the vicinity of violence near the border in November 2018 and just wanted to talk to them as part of its investigation of those incidents. This justification rings hollow; it is much more plausible that the agency was tagging people based on their perceived involvement with the caravan, not as potential witnesses to any incident of violence.
[...]Far from the southern border, officers of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) division of DHS in New York City were also keeping tabs on protests. Documents obtained by The Nation via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request included a spreadsheet of public protests, titled “Anti-Trump Protest Spreadsheet 07/31/2018.”
The document covered protests during the two-week period from July 31 to August 17, suggesting that such monitoring may be undertaken on a regular basis. It also showed the number of people who had signed up for the protests on Facebook, indicating that ICE was monitoring social media to follow political movements.
DHS claims it was monitoring leftist activists in New York to provide agents from ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) unit with “situational awareness” information in case they were traveling through the city “on work or personal time.” Again, the title of the document gives away what is likely the agency’s true intent: the list is not about protests or demonstrations in general, it is focused on “anti-Trump” (and anti-ICE) political activity.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 15 2019, @01:32PM (12 children)
These are just the first dominos to fall. With governments and administrations that have enemies lists we are going to see much more of this type of thing, and much much worse.
When the press is reviled for reporting what government, military and police officials are doing we need to pay attention. If what is reported is true, then anyone trying to stop it or label the reporters as "enmities of the state" is endangering the 1st Amendment for all of us.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by DannyB on Friday March 15 2019, @02:17PM (4 children)
I agree that is true.
The problem is that about 1/2 the population is willing to turn a blind eye to it because . . . . Trump. MAGA. On Many Sides. Etc.
Which leads me to conclude that we have crossed the event horizon and that your first (unquoted) paragraph is absolutely true.
I'm just waiting to watch the train crash.
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(Score: 1) by khallow on Friday March 15 2019, @05:23PM (3 children)
Or Obama, prior to 2016. I think the best thing about Trump is that his support is unusually thin for a president. Sure, he has hardcore supporters, but they're not half of US voters. We actually have a better chance than usual to reverse some of these abuses.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 15 2019, @06:23PM (1 child)
Reverse to what state? The state of abuse under Obama, Baby Bush, Clinton, Papa Bush, Reagan ...?
(Score: 2, Insightful) by khallow on Friday March 15 2019, @06:41PM
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Friday March 15 2019, @06:37PM
I could be biased. So I say that up front.
As I seem to recall, not so many people were in favor of the state abuses when it was Obama doing them. Or George W doing them.
With Trump, it is like a cult following. Just IMO. Don't dare criticize Trump. Trump can do absolutely no wrong.
Again, just IMO from my own POV and biases.
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(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 15 2019, @03:03PM (1 child)
Many dominos indeed, for example the Integrity Initiative. It is likely you haven't heard about this yet, as intended.
Data was obtained by anonymous:
https://www.cyberguerrilla.org/blog/operation-integrity-initiative-british-informational-war-against-all-part-4/ [cyberguerrilla.org]
Good coverage on it:
http://syriapropagandamedia.org/working-papers/briefing-note-on-the-integrity-initiative [syriapropagandamedia.org]
another source:
https://www.ukcolumn.org/article/integrity-initiative-look-deep-state [ukcolumn.org]
Their own website:
https://www.integrityinitiative.net [integrityinitiative.net]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 15 2019, @04:06PM
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/jan/09/free-societies-russia-misinformation-integrity-initiative [theguardian.com]
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 15 2019, @03:58PM (2 children)
Good job for NBC to have published this, this is what journalists should be doing.
On the other hand, this is also what our state security services should be doing. Lest we forget, there is a great human tragedy that was unleashed by a group of (naive?) virtue signallers and social justice warriors. Thousands of people were enticed to leave their villages and travel through a foreign country, with the hope of breaking into a third where milk and honey supposedly flow. When adults (everywhere, btw.) see big money flash before their faces, they will do things like push their kids through the desert even if it comes at the cost of their lives. This is a humanitarian crime.
While the US has been steadfast against any thrusts by the caravan to overrun the border, the Mexicans are now suffering from these economic migrants right now amassed in Tijuana. Indeed, this operation was a joint effort by Mexico and the United States.
It is sensible for the governments to want to know whether the "journalists/photographers" are bona fide, or are part of the PR organization of "Pueblo sin fronteras" and whoever else are the "organizers/instigators".
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 15 2019, @07:17PM (1 child)
anti trump protestors is one thing, but investigating who is organizing to bring in illegal immigrants is totally the fucking job of the DHS, assuming the dept. exists in the first place.
(Score: 2) by sjames on Saturday March 16 2019, @02:39AM
The problem with your narrative is that they are not now illegal, and since they intend to present themselves at a port of entry and request asylum, they do not intend to be illegal, that action is entirely legal according to treaties the U.S. signed of it's own free will.
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Friday March 15 2019, @06:38PM
Many dominos dies to bring us this news.
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(Score: 2) by realDonaldTrump on Friday March 15 2019, @07:38PM
"I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic...." Our wonderful Oath of Allegiance. And that's something we've had since 1790. That's no typo, that's not a typo, I didn't mean 1970. I said, 1790. SINCE BEFORE WE HAD THE 1ST. AMMENDMENT!!!!!! Long time, very long time. And that one's not in our fantastic Constitution. It comes from our Naturalization Act of 1970. Passed by our VERY 1ST. Congress. And signed by our VERY 1ST. President. So long ago, when Andrew Jackson and so many of our Founding Fathers were still around. Still makeing some very special laws. Something that not many folks have heard about. If they became an American, they know. Because we asked them to swear to our Oath. And for a long time, if they didn't swear, they didn't get Citizenship. And, our brave Soldiers swear to that one too. Many people. The ones that are born American, our natural born Citizens, maybe don't know. Maybe, don't have to take it. Too bad. They don't know our very special history.
Our Founding Fathers knew. Because they were there -- making it. They made a lot of enemies. The Foreign. And, unfortunately, the Domestic. And we still have a lot -- too many to keep in your head, we have to write it down. And I don't know when the Enemies Lists started. But I didn't start them. And I don't think Senator McCarthy (RIP!!) started them. I know when my Kill List started. That one is an Obama number. Anomalous, did you tell Cheatin' Obama, "oh, I don't like Kill List -- Disposition Matrix, please cancel that one!" He didn't like calling it Kill List, I call it what it was. What it is. He put many people on that list. And killed, or locked up, so many of them. Foreigners. And Americans. Big success for Obama. And as everybody knows, that's my list now. And suddenly, it's a "bad" thing. According to the haters & loosers. Don't worry, I took many names off of that one. And put on many different names. I can put anybody I want on it. Including reporters. Including people in our government. And their families. I strongly believe we must go after the families. And that's something President Obama never said. And President Bush Jr. never said. But, they did it. Look up, wedding drones. So many articles in our Fake News Media about, they turned Weddings into Funerals. Sounds very funny, it is very funny. And our Fake News MSM had a great sense of humor about that one -- so unlike how they write about Donald J. Trump. But, it's no joke. It's what we needed. These were very foolish Presidents. But they weren't complete fools. They went after our Country's enemies. And, so am I, very strongly. As I promised. And I'm very fortunate to have some very tough folks helping with that one. MAGA!!!