Hello Friends, the following is a post I just received from super anti pot warrior Chuck Grassley, Iowa republican federal senator in response to me poking him over that vicious NDAA 2012 filth believe it or not, this guy can actually help us get rid of it if we could persuade his paranoid ass he needs to help us. I need specifics to complain of, folks. I need to motivate him and so do you. contact me with things to talk to him about? here goes: Dear Mr. Manke: Thank you for contacting me with your concerns about the National Security Agency Surveillance Programs. I am committed to ensuring these government surveillance programs are narrowly tailored to obtain information that is only absolutely necessary for legitimate foreign intelligence and counterterrorism purposes. As you know, media outlets recently reported that a former employee of a defense contractor leaked information regarding the existence of government surveillance programs which target individuals located overseas. The same media reports reported that surveillance programs are based on two statutes which provide the legal basis. Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) allows the government to conduct surveillance of non-U.S. persons located outside of the United States. Its purpose is to counter terrorist threats by allowing the government to target and intercept communications, like telephone calls or email, of non-U.S. persons located outside the United States for foreign intelligence or counter-terrorism purposes. Under the law, the government is not allowed to target a U.S. person or target a foreign national to gain information on a U.S. citizen. If any communication of a U.S. person is inadvertently acquired, it must be destroyed if the communication is not relevant to the current authorized purpose. The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA Court) must approve the procedures to ensure protection of privacy and civil liberties. Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act allows the government to obtain the business records when they are conducting a counterterrorism investigation. This provision of the statute permits the government to obtain court approval to search a database limited to phone numbers and duration of phone calls (as opposed to actual communications), if the government provides a reasonable suspicion, based on specific facts, to believe the information is relevant to an authorized investigation to obtain foreign intelligence information not concerning a United States person or to protect against international terrorism or clandestine intelligence activities. This information is stored in secure networks and can only be accessed by a limited number of authorized personnel with appropriate clearance and adequate training. Each search of the database and the basis for the search is recorded and regularly reviewed by the Department of Justice. Any metadata collected under this program that has not been reviewed and minimized must be destroyed within 5 years. Nevertheless, in light of the recent public discussion on these programs, and the confusing explanations offered by the President and his staff, I have raised concerns with the Obama Administration on whether it is following the law as intended when carrying out these programs. These questions have not yet been answered, and various Congressional inquiries continue, which I fully support. Again, thank you for contacting my office with your concerns. I hope this gives you information about the statutes that provide a legal basis for government surveillance programs that have been in the news recently. Do not hesitate to contact my office if you have any other questions or concerns. Sincerely, Chuck
Posted on: Tue, 23 Jul 2013 16:36:58 +0000
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