Blog @ MoreWhat.com

It seems reasonable that part of why FISA was established includes providing another layer of oversight within government on sensitive issues. A way to increase the assurance that operations not lending themselves to wide open public availability are handled properly. As if it is not bad enough Congress and the White House are at odds over this task, another uninvited guest crashes the party.

The knuckle ball came from none other than the ACLU. That’s correct. The ACLU really wants you to believe they are protecting your rights. It is no surprise that the ACLU will quite likely raise an issue that will challenge the ability of government to gather intelligence with any degree of protection for an activity that by its nature is classified, secret or in some way not intended for broadcast to everyone on the planet.

Secret Court Asks For White House View on Inquiry
ACLU Seeking Rulings Issued On Warrantless Wiretapping
By Dan Eggen
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, August 18, 2007; A03

A secret U.S. intelligence court has ordered the Bush administration to register its views about a records request by the American Civil Liberties Union, which wants the court to release a series of pivotal orders issued earlier this year about the National Security Agency’s wiretapping program.

Do you think it will stop there? The ACLU has a history of mucking up the works. Under the pretense of protecting the civil liberties of Americans they expect us all to believe their intentions are honorable as a matter of course. The press release from the ACLU’s website is excerpted below. It is a little lengthy and if you want the whole thing it is at aclu.org.

ACLU Asks Secret Intelligence Court to Release Orders That Led to “Emergency” Wiretapping Legislation (8/8/2007)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: media@aclu.org
Group Says Public Debate About Government Surveillance Should Be Fully Informed

WASHINGTON - In the first effort of its kind, the American Civil Liberties Union will today file legal papers with the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) requesting that it disclose recent legal opinions discussing the scope of the government’s authority to engage in secret wiretapping of Americans.

The ACLU initiated this action following Congress’ passage this past weekend of the so-called “Protect America Act,” a law that vastly expands the Bush administration’s authority to conduct warrantless wiretapping of Americans’ international phone calls and e-mails. In their aggressive push to justify passing this ill-advised legislation, the administration and members of Congress made repeated and veiled references to orders issued by the FISC earlier this year. The legislation is set to expire in six months unless it is renewed.

Right away their personal opinion of opposing any surveillance methods is apparent in the second paragraph in the release above. The timing and the docs available could make you wonder if the ACLU and the Dems are working together. Oh, it’s probably just a simple coincidence. Both left, some left-left or far fringe left and we’re talking intelligence gathering here. Are they concerned about Americans or just illegals and terroritsts making phone calls to parties outside the US? Have to end this paragraph before it turns into a rant.

Here is a story about the ACLU and others meeting with the DOJ on the subject.

Justice, civil liberties groups battle over spy tactics
By Andrew Noyes National Journal’s Technology Daily Tues August 14, 2007
Privacy and civil liberties advocates met with Justice Department officials on Monday for what was characterized by some as a contentious conversation about the impact of a recently passed law that enhances the executive branch’s authority to spy on U.S. citizens.

ACLU staffers who attended learned “virtually nothing new,” the group’s executive director, Anthony Romero, said in a same-day letter to Gonzales. It is unclear what the agency’s plans are for using the power to intercept e-mails and telephone calls when one party is on American soil, he said.

Click on it to read the rest.

And here is more from the ACLU’s site. This is only the beginning and who knows where it will end?

In Unprecedented Order, FISA Court Requires Bush Administration to Respond to ACLU’s Request That Secret Court Orders Be Released to the Public (8/17/2007)

Government Must Respond by August 31

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: media@aclu.org

WASHINGTON - In an unprecedented order, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) has required the U.S. government to respond to a request it received last week by the American Civil Liberties Union for orders and legal papers discussing the scope of the government’s authority to engage in the secret wiretapping of Americans. According to the FISC’s order, the ACLU’s request “warrants further briefing,” and the government must respond to it by August 31. The court has said that any reply by the ACLU must be filed by September 14.

If you are unfamiliar with the ACLU a visit to their site and a look at their recent press releases may give you a clue of what is most important to them. There is a better than reasonable chance the ACLU’s intentions have little to do with the civil liberties of Americans. Pay attention to their involvement in the FISA issue as you may find a troubling example of what their goals really are.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

Trackposted to Perri Nelson’s Website, The Virtuous Republic, Rosemary’s Thoughts, The Random Yak, Nanotechnology Today, Jeanette’s Celebrity Corner, Nuke’s News & Views, Stuck On Stupid, Webloggin, The Bullwinkle Blog, The Amboy Times, Conservative Cat, Conservative Thoughts, Inside the Northwest-Territory, third world county, The World According to Carl, The Pink Flamingo, Planck’s Constant, Dumb Ox Daily News, The Yankee Sailor, and Gone Hollywood, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 22nd, 2007 at 8:27 pm and is filed under Bush, Terrorism, wordpress, Law, Congress, Legislation, ACLU. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.