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Senators demand answers on expired surveillance programs:
Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Mike Lee (R-Ut.) on Thursday pressed the Trump administration on whether and how mass surveillance programs authorized by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act have been halted since the act's expiration.
The letter to Attorney General William Barr and Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe raises concerns that the administration may be be continuing to conduct surveillance operations by relying on Executive Order 12333.
The order, issued on 1981, has been used before to conduct operations without statutory authorization or congressional oversight.
"Congress and the American people have a right to know if this or any other administration is spying on people in the United States outside of express congressional approval, with no or diminished guardrails," Sens. Leahy and Lee wrote.
"The rights of all Americans depend on their government exercising its power responsibly, adhering to the rule of law, and upholding its duty to act transparently. Any surveillance conducted in the absence of statutory authorities and congressional oversight would be extraordinarily concerning and illegal."
Reauthorization of the key FISA provisions under the USA Freedom Act has stalled.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by Rosco P. Coltrane on Thursday July 23 2020, @06:02AM (10 children)
It was my impression that the CIA, NSA, DHS and other such nasty pieces of work pretty much acted outside the law with impenetrable discretionary budgets, and refused to answer on "national security" grounds or made shit up whenever asked to explain what they're doing exactly.
It was also my impression that it's nothing new, and it predates 9/11 by decades.
So, kudos on the Patrick Leahy and Mike Lee for stirring up the mud a bit, but I'm not sure they'll achieve anything...
(Score: 2) by mhajicek on Thursday July 23 2020, @06:12AM (2 children)
You are correct, and it's been that way since the 70's at least.
The spacelike surfaces of time foliations can have a cusp at the surface of discontinuity. - P. Hajicek
(Score: 3, Insightful) by The Mighty Buzzard on Thursday July 23 2020, @11:06AM (1 child)
A lot longer than that. Never heard of J Edgar Hoover, fer instance?
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 2) by RS3 on Thursday July 23 2020, @04:19PM
Exactly. And the problem is that society has acclimated. "Oh well, it hasn't hurt me, life is good, it must be helping."
(Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Thursday July 23 2020, @06:25AM
Patrick Leahy... in office for 45 years!
This is what a crotchety old man does. It's like the old banker that throws a bunch of money out over the balcony to watch the crowd gather like pigeons.
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 23 2020, @07:31AM (1 child)
True bipartisan action as it used to be and should be - Congress examining the President to see whether he is following the law, not just cheap partisan virtue signaling.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Thursday July 23 2020, @11:07AM
Never discount the possibility of virtue signaling during an election year.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by epitaxial on Thursday July 23 2020, @12:50PM (2 children)
I believe the FBI can't find their way out of a wet paper bag. They were alerted on two occasions about the Parkland school shooter being a threat. Each of those went straight to the trash. The first was about a Youtube video he posted threatening violence. The FBI claims they had no idea who posted it and didn't bother going further. Guess he didn't use any copyrighted music in his video or else shit would have gotten real. The second was a direct tip of this person is a threat, here is his name and here is the school. A two minute call to the school would have confirmed that asshole was off his rocker. He wasn't allowed to carry a backpack and teachers were to alert the police if he was seen with one. It was even the running joke at the school that he would shoot up the place. That massacre could easily have been prevented had they bothered looking into the tips.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 23 2020, @02:15PM
Sadly, that's because the FBI isn't supposed to stop things like that. They're supposed to be looking for kiddie diddlers and creating fake terrorists so that the American people can feel safe.
The FBI has always been irredeemably corrupt. People get all bent out of shape about the police, but the FBI is up there with the CIA and NSA in terms of being a corrupting influence on our "Democracy."
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday July 23 2020, @03:14PM
Don't forget the Boston Marathon bombers. The Russians TOLD US those two boys were trouble, and our guys dismissed the warning.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Tokolosh on Thursday July 23 2020, @01:54PM
Once you've built the big machinery of political power, remember you won't always be the one to run it.
P. J. O'Rourke