In the News
This morning, the House of Representatives agreed to extend the sunset date for Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) by 10 days so members can continue to try and resolve the split between proponents of the highly controversial federal surveillance law, and their pro-privacy counterparts who argue that the Fourth Amendment requires that a search warrant be issued prior to any FISA queries. Section 702 of FISA, which is scheduled to sunset on April 20th, currently allows for warrantless, back-door surveillance of American citizens’ communications.The10-day extension is now headed to the Senate.
Here’s My Take
The right to privacy is a foundational principle that contributed to the American Revolution, hence its inclusion as the Fourth Amendment. Yet, Congress and the Executive Branch continue to erode it year after year, regardless of which party is in control.
Amendments to require a search warrant prior to a FISA query were put forward on Tuesday by folks like Rep. Andy Biggs (AZ) and Rep. Thomas Massie (KY), unfortunately, those measures failed to move forward. FISA proponents and President Trump would rather “risk the giving up of [their] rights and privileges as a citizen” for the military.
Closing
Libertas believes that, in a world that is now entirely digital and rife with surveillance technology, now is the time to stand up for the Fourth Amendment. We urge Congress to refrain from moving forward with what the Trump Administration describes as a “clean” renewal of FISA, and American citizens to contact their Congressional representatives to request that they don’t accept this dirty deal.
