Amash Amendment #100: Stop NSA’s Blanket Surveillance of Americans
H R 2397, Stop Dragnet Surveillance of U.S. citizens. Justin Amash: “We came close (205-217). If just seven Representatives had switched their votes, we would have succeeded. Thank YOU for making a difference. We fight on to defend liberty.” CLICK HERE TO SEE HOW YOUR REPRESENTATIVE VOTED
2014 NDAA
H R 1960, National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2014. The bill authorizes $55 billion*more* in military spending than the amount authorized by law under sequestration and provides $5 billion*more*than the President’s request for Overseas Contingency Operations (i.e., war funding). It also contains a misguided and dangerous policy statement on Syria that encourages greater military intervention and implies congressional support for arming the Syrian rebels.And yet again, the House rejected an amendment (Smith-Amash-Gibson) that would have repealed unconstitutional sec. 1021 of the 2012 NDAA, which gives the President sweeping new power to indefinitely detain anyone, including American citizens inside the United States, without charge or trial. Eighteen Republicans opposed their own party’s NDAA, which is the high mark for opposition in modern history. It passed 315-108. CLICK HERE TO SEE HOW YOUR REPRESENTATIVE VOTED
While he may not be close to becoming Speaker of the House, Justin Amash has slowly but surely become one of the more prominent Republicans in the rebellious wing of the House conference, as evidenced Monday when he effectively forced theactual Speaker of the House, John Boehner, to allow a vote on his amendment to partially defund the National Security Agency as part of the Department of Defense appropriations process. The revelations that the NSA had been collecting the phone and Internet data of millions of Americans en masse has given Amash a prime opportunity to move forward with some of his most important priorities.
Tomorrow the the house will vote on Amash’s HR 2397 amendment which will remove funding for NSA programs using the Patriot Act for blanket collection of phone records and metadata from phone service providers.
The summary of the amendment on the House of Representatives website reads:
Ends authority for the blanket collection of records under the Patriot Act. Bars the NSA and other agencies from using Section 215 of the Patriot Act to collect records, including telephone call records, that pertain to persons who are not subject to an investigation under Section 215.
NSA defenders in the Senate, especially Diane Feinstein and Saxby Chambliss, are flipping out. Today the National Security Head, Keith Alexander, scheduled a last-minute, members-only ‘top secret’ briefing. The invitation warned members that they could not share what they learned with their constituents or others. “The briefing will be held at the Top Secret/SCI level and will be strictly Members-Only,” reads the invite.
Keith Alexander, National Security Head
No matter what the results of tomorrows vote, the Amash amendment will put the House Representatives on record when it comes to NSA ‘snooping’. Voters will easily be able to find out WHICH REPRESENTATIVES favor tossing our 4th and 5th Amendments down “the toilet”.
As SOON as I have the information I will publish the ROLL CALL here so everyone knows how their representatives voted on limiting NSA mass surveillance. I will also include how U.S. House Representatives voted on the 2014 NDAA, which provides for arming and militarily aiding Al-Qaeda Syrian Rebels (yes, the ones that are massacring Christians, among others) and takes away American citizen’s rights to due process. I will also include the Roll Call for CISPA which aids dragnet surveillance by destroying private corporation’s “freedom of contract”, actually PROHIBITING companies from making legally binding commitment to users not to share personal data/e-mails. (Click here to find out how CISPA aids NSA ‘Dragnet Surveillance’.)
~It is STILL NOT TO LATE TO E-MAIL YOUR REPRESENTATIVE TONIGHT OR TO CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVE TOMORROW MORNING TO VOICE YOUR OPINION ABOUT
JUSTIN AMASH’S AMENDMENT.~
My Administration is committed to creating an unprecedented level of openness in Government. We will work together to ensure the public trust and establish a system of transparency, public participation, and collaboration. Openness will strengthen our democracy and promote efficiency and effectiveness in Government.
What happened?
“We were hopeful when Obama came into office that some of what we had seen in the Bush years would be reversed,” said Gary Daniels of the ACLU. “Instead, not only has it continued but it has EXPANDED.”
Guardian Journalist, Glenn Greenwald, and whistle blower, Edward Snowden, recently revealed that Obama has, for years, been in charge of a ‘Big Brother’ surveillance state that would make Richard Nixon blush with envy. The FBI, the NSA, DHS, CIA, plus Federal, military and “privately contracted” agencies, more than you can count using every finger on both hands, has a database of all your iMessages, your photos, your videos, your e-mails, your music playlist, your web search history, your documents and connection logs and your cell phone text messages.
Since Sept. 11, 2001, the top-secret world created to respond to the terrorist attacks has grown into an unwieldy enterprise spread over 10,000 U.S. locations
They have put your phone calls into their data base, including recordings of the contents and the ping triangulations — which can enable analysts to track your every movement of every day, even inside your home, if you are carrying your phone. Obama’s spy network has photocopied the front of every one of your snail mail envelopes. There’s evidence the federal government has collected information on your financial and credit card transactions in addition to your health records.
Obama’s spy agencies don’t just snoop on citizens.
Federal agencies used security badge access records to track the chief Washington correspondent for Fox News’, James Rosen’s, comings and goings from the State Department (court affidavit here). They traced the timing of his calls with a State Department security adviser suspected of sharing the classified report. They obtained a search warrant for Rosen’s personal e-mails.
Associated Press executives and First Amendment watchdogs ALSO have criticized the Justice Department for the broad scope of phone records it secretly subpoenaed from more than 20 phone lines of AP offices in Washington, Hartford, Conn., and New York.
Given the First Amendment’s protection of press freedom, is it ever legal for government to spy on, persecute or prosecute reporters doing their jobs? Just conducting an investigation is intimidating. According to Associated Press CEO Gary Pruit, “the message the government is now sending is — if you talk to the press we are going to go after you.”
To extend his executive power and oversight even further, Barack Obama has ordered federal employees to spy on their colleagues.
“See something, say something” appallingly has overreached into every nook and cranny of our personal lives.
But, if it keeps Americans safe what is the problem? Its not like any of us regular people are troublemakers who might, for example, do something rabble-rousing like doubt the “settled science of climate change” out-loud.
Why should we be concerned about surveillance if we have nothing to hide?
Here’s why…
Privacy isn’t simply the option to hide bad things. Privacy enables us to freely pursue the things that we enjoy, on our own terms. Privacy is your right to control the flow of information about yourself. You choose what details to share, when, where, and with whom. You may not be a terrorist, but there are details in everyone’s personal lives that they want to keep private. Privacy should be important to all who value freedom and the security of a comfortable voluntary lifestyle. It would be awkward to have your mother read through your every email and monitor your phone calls — forever. Let alone some stranger from the government.
Who hasn’t used the Internet to learn about and discuss political ideology? Which is something that the government is more likely to take a serious interest in than your embarrassing late night texts to your ex-boyfriend.
Should you trust government with the power to listen to private conversations—some undoubtedly concerning politics — whenever they want?
The answer should always be: no. Some Democrats are willing to defend the NSA-Verizon scandal because Barack Obama is in the Oval Office, just as some Republicans were willing to downplay wiretapping under George W. Bush.
That’s partisan political games.
The protection of civilian privacy is an issue far more important than red versus blue. No one should give any president, any power that they wouldn’t trust with their WORST enemy. A Democrat is POTUS today, but a future presidents could be Republican, Libertarian, from the Green Party or whatever. Parties have come and gone. So far, the Constitution has stood.
“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, papers and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.” ~4th Amendment
Our fourth amendment has been 100% compromised. As well as our first. Most of us did NOT consent. It was kept secret. When confronted by Senator Mark Udall (D-CO) and Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR), the Obama administration LIED. They denied what was going on.
Any individual courageous enough to inform the public about secret abuses of our rights risked being prosecuted at unprecedented levels under the Obama administration. Even the Nixon administration was wussy in comparison. Fear of repercussions and intimidation enabled America’s “top secret world” to become so large, so unwieldy and so secretive that no one knows how much money it costs, how many people it employs, how many programs exist within it or exactly how many agencies do the same work.
“Watch your back.”
Allowing it to go on and stand unchallenged does far more damage to the republic than any law breaking. It sets new boundaries and rules for our government. It confirms what Richard Nixon argued for: “When the president does it, that means it is not illegal.”
The sheer breadth of America’s behemoth “top secret world” confirms the inadequacy of secret courts. Courts exist to enforce our rights in the face of government abuses. That’s one of the central geniuses of the founding fathers and the system of checks and balances they constructed.
When the decisions are secret, they stop being judicial in character. Law is built on mutual references among courts. When the law can’t reference itself, it stops being law, and emerges as something very different: in this case, a rubber stamp allowing any manner of dragnet violations impacting law-abiding Americans and our fundamental rights.
MUST READ: Top Secret America: a Hidden World, Growing Beyond Control. I can’t recommend this Washington Post article enough. It’s about the scope and size of America’s domestic spying and is shocking. CLICK HERE TO READ ARTICLE — YOU NEED TO KNOW THIS
Does anyone actually believe it’s a good idea to use weaponized military vehicles for civilian “surveillance”? Is this really the direction in which we are headed?
Meanwhile…
It’s o.k., they’re the good guys.”
According to the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office the $300,000 ShadowHawk drone, purchased from Vanguard Defense Industries, will take to the skies in the coming months to provide another tool in their law-enforcement arsenal.
Outside the Anaheim Police Department today.
Don’t worry…more “good guys”.
Aerial ‘Shadowhawk’ Police Drones can now deploy tasers & tear gas.
The concern by some is that the bill’s language is too broad, giving companies
and the government power to intercept, share or block user information as long as it is to fight “cybersecurity threats.”
An explanation of how CISPA wil kill ALL PRIVACY on the internet HERE.
What has gone largely unnoticed in this torrent of analysis, however, is that privacy tools for individuals already exist and they have so for many years! Quietly anticipating encroachment against basic Internet liberties, concerned cyber privacy advocates has been coding and releasing the tools that allow for private electronic communication and private web surfing. Proposed legislation like CISPA may or may not pass and become law, but if it does we have to understand the new landscape. Your privacy is up to you!
1. Email Privacy – Naked email is like a postcard for anyone to read. Pretty Good Privacy (PGP), an open source software program created by Phil Zimmermann in 1991, is the global standard for point-to-point encrypted and authenticated email. Hushmail is an OpenPGP-compatible web-based email platform that does not have access to your user password for decryption. Both products, when used correctly, offer subpoena-proof email communication.
2. File Privacy – Your files might be stored in the encrypted cloud but that doesn’t mean that they’re 100% safe for your eyes only. Free and open-source TrueCrypt allows you to encrypt folders or entire drives locally prior to syncing with Dropbox. BoxCryptor also facilitates local file encryption prior to cloud uploading and it comes with added compatibility for Android and iOS.
There is an alternative to the dual-application process described above. Although most cloud-based storage services transfer over an encrypted session and store data in an encrypted form, the files are still accessible to the service provider which makes the data vulnerable to court-ordered subpoena. In order to rectify this, two different zero-knowledge data storage companies provide secure online data backup and syncing – SpiderOak and Wuala. For obvious reasons, there is no password recovery and employees have zero access to your data.
3. Voice Privacy – Wiretapping will become more prevalent in the days and months ahead. From the creator of PGP, Zfone is a new secure VoIP phone software product utilizing a protocol called ZRTP which lets you make encrypted phone calls over the Internet. The project’s trademark is “whisper in someone’s ear from a thousand miles away.” You can listen to Zimmermann present Zfone at DEFCON 15.
Also utilizing ZRTP, open-source Jitsi provides secure video calls, conferencing, chat, and desktop sharing. Because of security issues and lawful interception, Tor Project’s Jacob Appelbaum recommends using Jitsi instead of Skype.
Designed specifically for mobile devices and utilizing ZRTP, open-source RedPhone from Whisper Systems is an application that enables encrypted voice communication between RedPhone users on Android.
4. Chat Privacy – Encrypting your chat or instant messaging sessions is just as important as encrypting your email. Cryptocat establishes a secure, encrypted chat session that is not subject to commercial or government surveillance. Similar to Cryptocat, the older and more durable Off-the-record Messaging (OTR) cryptographic protocol generates new key pairs for every chat implementing a form of perfect forward secrecy and deniable encryption. It is available via Pidgin plugin.
5. Traffic Privacy – The final step in the process is geo-privacy, which refers to the protection of ‘information privacy’ with regard to geographic information. Virtual Private Networks, or VPNs, have been used consistently for anonymous web browsing and IP address masking. Just make sure that your VPN provider does not log IP addresses and that they accept a form of payment that does not link you to the transaction.
Additionally, the Tor Project provides free software and an open network for privacy-oriented Internet usage. Intended to protect users’ personal freedom, privacy, and ability to conduct confidential business, Tor (The onion router) is a system that improves online anonymity by routing Internet traffic through a worldwide volunteer network of layering and encrypting servers which impedes network surveillance or traffic analysis.
