Tell your members of Congress: Fix FISA

[Hotspring 44]

02/17/2012
Obama Administration Asks Supreme Court to Dismiss ACLU Challenge to Warrantless Wiretapping Law (https://www.aclu.org/blog/national-security/obama-administration-asks-supreme-court-dismiss-aclu-challenge-warrantless)

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Tell your members of Congress: Fix FISA (https://secure.aclu.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=4120&s_subsrc=bor)

Message subject: Fix FISA and defend the Constitution.

Dear [Decision Maker],
Nearly four years ago, Congress passed an unconstitutional domestic wiretapping bill the FISA Amendments Act (FAA) allowing the NSA to spy on Americans' international phone calls and emails. This law is set to sunset at the end of 2012. Congress should fix this legislation to protect my privacy and restore checks and balances.

Below is the message (on the ACLU website) that you can personalize if you wish.

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We must fix the FAA by doing the following:

1. Transparency. The government must publicly explain how it is using the Act, how often it has abused it, and how many communications of Americans have been swept up in the NSA's blanket surveillance under the Act.

2. End blanket surveillance. The most troubling aspect of the Act is that it authorizes the NSA to engage in blanket surveillance of Americans' international communications without any individualized suspicion the government can collect your communications even if you haven't done anything wrong. Congress should forbid the suspicionless surveillance of Americans' international communications.

3. Better safeguards for Americans' privacy. Once the NSA has collected Americans' communications under the Act, there are few restrictions on its ability to store those communications for later searching or on its ability to share those communications and the identities of the Americans monitored with other agencies. Congress must reform the Act to better protect the privacy of Americans whose communications are swept up in the NSA's dragnet.

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https://secure.aclu.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=4120&s_subsrc=bor

[janemaati]

I received your letter and want to thank you for expressing your concerns about government surveillance authorities. I recognize that this is an important issue to you, and I welcome the opportunity to share my points of view.
I believe that law enforcement and the intelligence community need the authorities in the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) to collect intelligence information necessary to prevent terrorist attacks and protect our nation. Under FISA, surveillance authorities are subject to judicial oversight from the FISA Court, require approvals from senior officials in the Executive Branch, and are subject to full oversight by the Department of Justice and the Congress.
As Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, and as a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, I can assure you that oversight of the government's surveillance authorities is a major priority for these Committees.
I supported the FISA Extensions Act of 2011 (Public Law 112-3), which Congress passed on May 26, 2011 to extend three provisions in FISA—known as "roving wiretaps," "lone wolf," and "business records" provisions—until June 1, 2015. I believe these are important counterterrorism tools, and that the expiration of these authorities would reduce our security.
During the debate, I pledged, as Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, to hold hearings in that Committee on the uses of these three provisions and other FISA authorities, and those hearings have taken place. I intend to hold further hearings this year to continue considering FISA authorities and whether they should be extended.
Be assured that I recognize your concerns about the transparency and oversight of the Government's surveillance authorities. Like you, I strongly believe in transparent government, and protecting Americans' personal privacy rights. Unfortunately, there is a limit to the amount of transparency possible when discussing classified intelligence programs, which is why I believe that congressional oversight of these matters is vital.
Again, thank you for your letter. Hearing your perspectives is very helpful to me. Should you have any additional comments or questions, please contact my Washington, D.C. office at (202) 224-3841.


<CENTER _yuid="yui_3_1_1_2_133055560732382">Sincerely yours,


Dianne Feinstein
United States Senator</CENTER>