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ACLU Slams Wider Spying By NSA, Demands Congress Rein in Spy Powers, Block Telecom Immunity (12/16/2007)
Washington, DC – This week the Senate will consider making vast changes to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) and will determine whether telecommunications companies should be held liable for their role in President Bush’s warrantless wiretapping program. The New York Times ran a story today that elaborated on the administration and National Security Agency’s domestic spying partnerships with certain phone companies. The following is a statement from Caroline Fredrickson, director of the ACLU Washington Legislative Office.

Specter Substitution is Immunity by Another Name (12/13/2007)
Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union today urged the Senate Judiciary Committee to reject a bill offered by ranking member Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA). Senator Specter’s bill, the FISA Intelligence Surveillance Substitution Act of 2007, would remove the telecommunications companies and insert the federal government as the defendant in cases currently pending over domestic spying. The bill is scheduled to be marked up by the full Senate Judiciary Committee today.

ACLU Urges Congress Not to Repeat History With FISA (12/13/2007)
Washington, DC – Director of National Intelligence, Michael McConnell, and Attorney General, Michael Mukasey, were scheduled to hold a closed congressional briefing today with legislation aimed at amending the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). The Senate is expected to vote in the coming days on FISA legislation largely shaped by the White House and passed by the Senate Intelligence Committee. The bill includes a provision that would give immunity to telecommunications companies who aided in the administration’s domestic spying. Also today, a bill introduced by Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) that would substitute the government as the plaintiff in cases currently pending against the telecoms was voted down in a meeting of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

New “Fusion Centers” Must Be Open, Carefully Monitored and Subject to Restraints, ACLU Says In New Report (12/12/2007)
WASHINGTON – New institutions now emerging in American life – “fusion centers” – are raising many questions about privacy and government openness and must be carefully bounded and monitored to ensure that they remain a legitimate and effective law enforcement tool, according to a new report released today by the American Civil Liberties Union.

ACLU Asks Majority Leader Reid to Allow the Senate to Vote for Fourth Amendment Protections, Cheers Senators Who Take a Stand Against Immunity (12/12/2007)
Washington, DC -- The American Civil Liberties Union is calling on Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to allow the Senate to vote for the Judiciary Committee’s FISA bill without letting the Bells off the hook.

ACLU Slams Department of Justice Spy Opinions (12/07/2007)
Washington, DC – Today, following revelations by Senate Intelligence Committee member Senator Sheldon Whitehouse on secret legal opinions regarding the administration's domestic spying program, the American Civil Liberties Union called on Congress to reject excessive surveillance powers for the administration. The opinions, from the Office of Legal Counsel, were written by the request of the administration as it was searching for new law enforcement and intelligence techniques. The Senate is currently weighing its options with legislation aimed at amending the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act - the very law President Bush circumvented with his warrantless wiretapping program. In August, the ACLU filed a motion requesting that the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) make public the very rulings that Senator Whitehouse spoke of. In an unprecedented order, the FISC required the U.S. government to respond to the request and a decision from the court is pending.

ACLU Says Specter Substitution Misses the Mark in FISA Debate (12/05/2007)
Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union today urged the Senate Judiciary Committee to thoroughly scrutinize a new bill offered by ranking member Senator Specter (R-PA). Senator Specter’s bill, the FISA Intelligence Surveillance Substitution Act of 2007, would remove the telecommunications companies and insert the federal government as the defendant in cases currently pending over domestic spying. The bill will be marked up by the full Judiciary Committee this Thursday.

ACLU Urges Vote On Senate Judiciary FISA Bill and Rejection of Telecom Immunity (12/04/2007)
Statement from Caroline Fredrickson

ACLU Cheers No Telecom Immunity Vote from Judiciary Committee, Lauds Chairman Leahy, Sen. Feingold and Rep. Holt’s Actions (11/15/2007)
Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union is delighted that the Senate Judiciary Committee chose not to address telecom immunity in its version of a bill updating Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). Although the rest of the bill does not pass constitutional muster, the ACLU applauds the Committee for not letting the bells off the hook.

ACLU Says Spy Law Still Needs Work (11/09/2007)
Washington, DC – After proposals to alter portions of a surveillance bill were released by the Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday, the American Civil Liberties Union once again urged meaningful constitutional protections be added to the legislation. The FISA Amendments Act seeks to update the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act and was written in response to the so-called Protect America Act that was rushed through Congress in August. The bill as drafted by the Senate Intelligence Committee includes immunity for the telecommunications companies for their role in the administration’s domestic spying program. The Judiciary Committee is expecting to take up that provision next week.

Terrorist Watch List Attacked for Size, Ineffectiveness, House committee grills government directors on unwieldy watch list (11/08/2007)
Washington, DC – The House Homeland Security Committee grilled government officials today about the government’s terrorist watch list, asking the same question the American Civil Liberties Union has been posing for years: Why is the list so enormous? The list has ballooned to 860,000 people and continues to grow.

ACLU, MoveOn, People For the American Way and 250,000 Americans tell Congress - “Don’t Let the Bells Off the Hook” (10/31/2007)
Washington, DC – After the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing to consider domestic surveillance legislation, activists sent a clear message to Capitol Hill – don’t let the bells off the hook for domestic spying. The American Civil Liberties Union, MoveOn.org Political Action, People For the American Way and bloggers from Open Left, Salon, Fire Dog Lake and others delivered petitions to Senate and House offices today illustrating Americans’ widespread opposition to granting immunity to telecom companies that may have aided in the violation of Fourth Amendment and privacy rights. Petitions circulated by the groups garnered more than 250,000 signatures from concerned constituents.

ACLU Calls Hand Over of Spy Documents Self-Serving (10/26/2007)
Washington, DC – After months of stonewalling, the White House has offered to release documents regarding its illegal wiretapping to the members of the Senate Judiciary Committee in an effort to ease the way for intelligence legislation it wants passed. The American Civil Liberties Union labeled the release manipulative and self-serving as these documents have been under subpoena for over four months. The administration has held onto the documents until Congress was in a position to aid the White House.

ACLU Applauds Senators’ Stands on Telecom Immunity, Growing List of Senators Won’t Let the Telecoms Off the Hook (10/25/2007)
WASHINGTON -- The American Civil Liberties Union stands behind senators who have pledged to stand up against any FISA gutting legislation that includes letting the telecom companies off the hook for illegal activity. Senators who have pledged to stand against immunity for telecoms are: Senator Joseph Biden (D-CT), Senator Christopher Dodd (D-CT), Senator Russell Feingold (D-WI). Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA), and Senator Barack Obama (D-IL). Senator Dodd was the first to announce that he would actively oppose any legislation that included immunity for illegal acts committed by telecommunications companies over the past six years.

ACLU Calls for Stricter Oversight of Terrorist Watch Lists (10/24/2007)
Washington, DC – Today the Senate Homeland Security Committee held a hearing on terror watch lists, an issue that the American Civil Liberties Union has been carefully observing since September 11, 2001. This comes on the heels of a GAO report that was released today detailing the progress of the Terrorist Screening Centers. The ACLU noted that though the report states some progress was achieved, that progress is still heavily outweighed by major concerns regarding privacy and efficiency.

ACLU Disappointed in Senate Intel Committee Vote on FISA, Wyden/Feingold Amendments Slightly Improve Bad Bill (10/19/2007)
Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union is mystified that the Senate Select Intelligence Committee would pass a FISA bill, drafted with heavy input from the Bush administration, which does not protect Americans from intrusive domestic spying and creates a path to immunity for telecommunications executives. However, a small improvement was made as Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Senator Russell Feingold (D-WI) were successful in including the addition of a requirement that the government get a warrant when it targets an American abroad (such as a missionary, business person or soldier). Now the bill moves to the Senate Judiciary committee.

ACLU Opposes RESTORE Act, House Bill Does Not Have Sufficient Civil Liberties Protections (10/17/2007)
Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union today announced its opposition to the RESTORE Act, saying the bill gives the government the ability to spy upon Americans without an individual warrant. Since the bill does not require individual warrants before government agents seize material from Americans on American soil, it fails to be constitutional.

Selective Document Release Does Not Justify Telecom Immunity, ACLU Says (10/17/2007)
Washington, DC – After months of ignoring congressional subpoenas, yesterday the Bush administration submitted selected documents on domestic spying to the Senate Intelligence Committee. The Senate Judiciary Committee originally requested documents outlining the legal basis for the warrantless eavesdropping program in June and the administration has since refused to cooperate, missing deadline after deadline. Though it is unclear what exact documents were given to the Senate Intelligence Committee, their disclosure was aimed at securing immunity for telecommunications companies for their role in the domestic spying program. The ACLU strongly rejects any attempt at immunizing telecom companies for violating the law and Americans’ privacy rights.

ACLU Response to President Bush’s Request for Telecom Amnesty, Civil Liberties Group Lauds House Committee Vote to Reject Telecom Immunity (10/10/2007)
Washington, DC – The ACLU responded to the president’s call for telecom amnesty in the RESTORE Act and two House Committees' vote to reject the immunity provision in mark-ups of the legislation.

ACLU Demands Fourth Amendment Protections, Says FISA Fix Must Include Individual Warrants (10/10/2007)
Washington, DC - Today, as two key House committees are scheduled to review FISA-related legislation, the American Civil Liberties Union urged lawmakers to keep the Fourth Amendment in FISA and require that the government get individual warrants before monitoring American phone calls and emails. Both the House Judiciary and Intelligence Committees are scheduled to mark up legislation aimed at fixing the controversial Protect America Act, which broadly expanded the government’s ability to spy on Americans. The bill being marked up is the RESTORE Act, which grants the government the use of "basket" warrants (sometimes called "blanket" or "program" warrants). Basket warrants raise major Fourth Amendment concerns as they do not require specific individuals be the targets of suspicion. The ACLU is asking the Committees to amend the RESTORE Act to include individual warrants.