Today ACLU Legislative Director Caroline Fredrickson sounded the alarm in HuffPost on Congress’s next act of capitulation: approving and even expanding the White House’s warrantless wiretapping program:
Congress is under no obligation to pass this bad legislation, and can easily let the Protect America Act expire. FISA already gives the government all of the tools it needs to spy on terrorists and keep us safe. Clearly, this is about expanding the government’s ability to spy on innocent Americans who have no connections to terrorism.
To pour salt on the wound, the Senate is considering giving phone companies that colluded with the NSA immunity from the 40 or so lawsuits brought by its customers for violating their Fourth Amendment rights. “Customers who’ve had their rights violated should get their day in court,” she writes. “We’ll also never learn the facts about the warrantless wiretapping program if the telecoms are let off the hook.”
Learn More About the Issues on This Page
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Federal Court Appeal in Miami Over Florida’s Discriminatory Housing Law
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ACLU Statement on Congress Passing Bill that Massively Expands the Government’s Power to Spy on Americans Without a Warrant
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The CIA's Long and Dangerous History of Refusing to Answer Absurdly Obvious Questions
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Federal Court Argument on CIA’s Refusal to Confirm or Deny Records About Agency’s “Operational Control” Over Camp VII at Guantánamo