American lawyer, editor, and politician Gideon J. Tucker is probably a name all but the most ardent history buffs don't recognize. But you do probably recognize this quote: 'No man's life, liberty or property are safe while the Legislature is in session.'
Truer words have never been spoken.
Case in point:
The Trojan Horse That Would Force Your Barista To Spy on You https://t.co/6bwpVeRlEo
— Mollie (@MZHemingway) December 11, 2023
Real Clear Politics has the details:
First, the bill’s marquee “reform” is the prohibition of only a handful of searches or “queries” of information about Americans under Section 702, the authority enacted by Congress to enable foreign surveillance but often used by the government for domestic spying. The type of search the bill would prohibit is “evidence-of-a-crime only” queries. But in 2022, out of over 200,000 queries of Americans’ data, there were only two instances of the FBI accessing Section 702 data under this rubric. And even if that prohibition were in place, the FBI could easily evade it simply by claiming in every instance that agents were looking for some (hypothetical) terror threat in addition to possible crimes. The bill’s non-reform “reform” would thus do nothing to stop the routine snooping on Americans, from 19,000 donors to a congressional campaign, to a House member and a senator, a judge, and numerous protesters of the left and right. Nor would this “reform” prevent known abuses, such as the NSA agents who used this powerful search program to check out online dating prospects and potential tenants.
It continues:
Let us unpack this: Under current law, electronic communication service providers include Internet service providers such as Google, Facebook/Meta, and Microsoft. It also includes telecom providers such as AT&T and Verizon. Under the law, these big companies are routinely compelled to hand over billions of foreign communications in addition to vast amounts of Americans’ communications that are “incidentally” caught up in this surveillance net.
But the House Intelligence bill’s expansion to include “equipment” would cover, for example, any small or medium-sized business that simply provides Wi-Fi or stores data. This means that your business landlord, Airbnb host, hotel manager, or coffee shop barista will have a legal obligation to give the government any of your emails, texts, or phone metadata that ran through their equipment. Larger entities, such as data centers, would also be enlisted in spying on Americans.
To call the expansion of government-mandated spying to baristas and landlords “reform” shows the contempt the intelligence community has for Congress and the very idea of oversight. It is nothing less than a Trojan horse buried in the House Intelligence bill.
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I won't matter if it's legal, constitutional, or right. They'll shove down our throats regardless. And our own party will back it. This country is broken
— Mild Mannered Maniac (@80sGeek) December 11, 2023
No, it won't matter.
And yes, it is.
Who wrote the "FISA Reform and Reauthorization Act"?
— Scott Mckee (@csmckee1776) December 12, 2023
It's sponsored in the House by Rep. Michael Turner, an Ohio Republican, and Rep. James Himes, a Democrat from Connecticut.
Bipartisan spying.
There's scant difference between the parties anymore. They're both hostile to individual liberty and scornful of ordinary citizens. A pox on both their houses. https://t.co/fumn5g4fxf
— Ralph L Santovenia (@Joker961) December 11, 2023
A pox, indeed.
🚨 H.R.6611: "Your business landlord, Airbnb host, hotel manager, or barista will have legal obligation to give gov't any of your emails, texts, or phone metadata that ran through their equipment. Data centers would also be enlisted in spying on Americans." @savingprivacy #ampFW https://t.co/C4cufi5TvZ
— FreedomWorks (@FreedomWorks) December 11, 2023
Look at all the places that the government can grab your data from.
To call the expansion of gov’t-mandated spying “reform” is laughable - the current House Intel proposal added “equipment” (any small or med.-sized biz that provides Wi-Fi or stores data) making your biz landlord, hotel mgr, etc., legally obligated to give data to the gov’t. https://t.co/kbHJIwsMdD
— Isinglass (@lezleecog) December 11, 2023
Someone needs to tell Congress Orwell was a cautionary tale, not an instruction manual.
So the ‘reform’ is to limit things they don’t do anyway but add reporting requirements to any source that might have desired data transit through their servers? This is a huge expansion of hidden spying in the name of limiting it.
— Vince Westin 🇺🇸☮️🧪 (@VinceWestin) December 11, 2023
This is pure propaganda. https://t.co/5iDE738iOS
Pure propaganda.
Excellent takedown of the HPSCI FISA 702 Trojan horse by superlawyer, @GSchaerr. #RejectHPSCI702Bill#StopTheNDAAhttps://t.co/oa6XLj4d6V
— Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee) December 12, 2023
We ask the good senator from Utah what he's going to do about this.
@RepBrecheen From your constituent: I urge you to reject this and any enhancement of gov surveillance of US citizens. Privacy is paramount. https://t.co/2j1sVnqvRd
— TimCouch - StraightUpAmerican (@TimCouch) December 12, 2023
Privacy is paramount. And all but extinct in America.
@BasedMikeLee is my Senate representative and has done an amazing job at bringing awareness to the HPSCI FISA 702 Trojan horse bill that is trying to be pushed through.
— Elijah Rich (@richdaddye) December 12, 2023
This article explains the risks really well. Take action and call your representative to tell them to vote… https://t.co/iDU8lOpPv4
Everyone should call their reps and tell them to vote against it.
Maybe they'll listen.
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