FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Media@dcaclu.org
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union today appeared before the
United States Commission on Civil Rights as that body, for the first
time ever,
took up the issue of the warrantless domestic spying program
conducted by the
National Security Agency. The commission, by statute,
has an oversight function
and duty to appraise the federal government’s
administration of
justice.
"We commend the commission for holding this briefing and we regard it as an
important first step," said Gregory T. Nojeim, Associate Director and Chief
Legislative Counsel of the ACLU Washington Legislative Office. "We urge the
commissioners to conduct an official inquiry into this gross violation of the
law and of civil rights. One federal court has agreed that the program is
illegal and unconstitutional. Americans deserve to know what has been done with
the information about them that was collected illegally."
Since reports of the NSA spying program first came to light, the ACLU has
argued the operation violated the Fourth Amendment and federal law. Legal and
constitutional experts from both ends of the political spectrum have agreed.
Also, in August 2006, in response to a lawsuit brought by the ACLU, a federal
judge found the program to be unconstitutional and said it must be stopped. That
case is under appeal and a decision is pending.
According to media reports, in 2002 President Bush signed a secret order
authorizing the NSA to monitor e-mails, telephone calls and other communications
of hundreds, and perhaps thousands, of U.S. citizens and foreign nationals
without first obtaining warrants. Each involved the communications of a person
who was in the United States communicating with a person abroad.
In January 2007, the Bush administration announced that it had abandoned its
warrantless wiretapping program in favor of a new program it did not describe
that is subject to approval of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. It
is unclear as to whether the government is now getting individualized warrants
based on individual suspicion, or "program warrants" that do not require
individualized suspicion of wrongdoing.
The ACLU has also filed complaints with the Public Utility Commissions in 24
states to trigger investigations into whether telecommunication companies have
provided the NSA with their customers’ private phone records. The federal
government has challenged many of these investigations.
"Congress must act to follow the commission’s lead and fully investigate the
NSA program," Nojeim added. "The American people deserve to know if their
government is upholding the letter and spirit of the law. Those who broke the
law must be held accountable."
The ACLU’s full statement before the Commission is available
at:
www.aclu.org/safefree/general/28938leg20070309.html
