Right Wing Big Hitters Organize Against Bush Spy Program

[Rose Siding]

Leading Conservatives Call for Extensive Hearings on NSA Surveillance; Checks on Invasive Federal Powers Essential

WASHINGTON, Jan. 17 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Patriots to Restore Checks and Balances (PRCB) today called upon Congress to hold open, substantive oversight hearings examining the President's authorization of the National Security Agency (NSA) to violate domestic surveillance requirements outlined in the Federal Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).

Former U.S. Rep. Bob Barr, chairman of PRCB, was joined by fellow conservatives Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform (ATR); David Keene, chairman of the American Conservative Union; Paul Weyrich, chairman and CEO of the Free Congress Foundation and Alan Gottlieb, founder of the Second Amendment Foundation, in urging lawmakers to use NSA hearings to establish a solid foundation for restoring much needed constitutional checks and balances to intelligence law.

"When the Patriot Act was passed shortly after 9-11, the federal government was granted expanded access to Americans' private information," said Barr. "However, federal law still clearly states that intelligence agents must have a court order to conduct electronic surveillance of Americans on these shores. Yet the federal government overstepped the protections of the Constitution and the plain language of FISA to eavesdrop on Americans' private communication without any judicial checks and without proof that they are involved in terrorism."
....
"The need to reform surveillance laws and practices adopted since 9/11 is more apparent now than ever. No one would deny the government the power it needs to protect us all, but when that power poses a threat to the basic rights that make our nation unique, its exercise must be carefully monitored by Congress and the courts. This is not a partisan issue; it is an issue of safeguarding the fundamental freedoms of all Americans so that future administrations do not interpret our laws in ways that pose constitutional concerns." -- David Keene, chairman, American Conservative Union

"If the law is not reformed, ordinary Americans' personal information could be swept into all-encompassing federal databases encroaching upon every aspect of their private lives. This is of particular concern to gun owners, whose rights guaranteed under the Second Amendment are currently being infringed upon under the Patriot Act's controversial record search provisions." -- Alan Gottlieb, founder, Second Amendment Foundation

http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=59381

[ixion]

1. while they're at it, that whole 'disruptor' legistlation should go, along

with the entire unPATRIOTic Act.

[Oreo]

2. George must have pissed off Grover

I wonder what did it... I guess George isn't fucking up the planet enough for Norquist's liking.

[KoKo]

3. Grover's ties to Abramoff/DeLay and others make him a candidate

for an indictment one would think. Maybe it's a bit of a "pre-emptive" strike to save his butt.

They are a bunch of hypocrits. These people could have spoken out before and they want to turn the attention to themselves to take the credit away from others like the Dem Left who have been yelling about this for years.

[KoKo]

4. Look at what Josh Marshall says about Norquist!

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/


Have you seen this headline?

Key presidential advisor used non-profit to launder Abramoff money.

You probably haven't. But it's a key part of the Abramoff story. And really just the beginning. The individual facts are all out there, sure. Grover Norquist is one of the two or three top Republican political operatives in Republican Washington. He's a close advisor to President Bush. Among other things he used his organization, Americans for Tax Reform, as a pass-through to hide the fact that Ralph Reed was getting his money for 'anti-gambling' activism from Washington's top Indian casino lobbyist.

I don't know about the law of non-profits and 501c3s. But that's got to be an abuse of some sort.

On front after front these scandals go right into the White House. A top official at the OMB arrested? The Deputy Secretary of the Interior Department under criminal investigation? Abramoff's former chief assistant a top White House aide?

Why the unwillingness to pursue this?
http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/

[Coastie for Truth]

5. The business community

especially the software and pharmaceutical industries are really pissed at this -- lots of technical data goes around the country - from lab to lab, from lab to home office, etc. via e-mail. Once that e-mail is (or could have been) intercepted, the developers and scientists can not make "The Patent Application Oath"

§ 102. Conditions for patentability; novelty and loss of right to patent

A person shall be entitled to a patent unless—
(a) the invention was known ... by others ("others" has been interpreted to include law enforcement operating without a warrant) in this country, ... , before the invention thereof by the applicant for patent, or

(b) the invention was ... described in a printed publication ("printed publications" includes printable e-mail files held by someone not in privity with the inventor or inventor's assignee) in this ... country ..., more than one year prior to the date of the application for patent in the United States,

And you know somebody will raise these issues. My kids are patent litigation attorneys. ;)

So, now "everything" has to go by FedEx -- thoroughly constipating our tech and bio-tech industries.