ACLU Has Massive Database Of Its Members’ Financial Information
Posted on May 11, 2006
I knew it was only a matter of time before the ACLU would chime in on USA Today’s leaking of classified information about the NSA program. And here it is….
In a story released today in USA Today it was revealed that the NSA has been collecting call information about millions of American residents and businesses served by Verizon, AT&T and BellSouth. One industry insider referred to it as the “largest database ever assembled in the world.” The American Civil Liberties Union strongly condemned the Bush administration’s most egregious abuse of power to date.
In April, ACLU leaders met with White House officials, asking for a review of whether federal agencies working to combat terrorism are targeting innocent citizens or other lawful residents. Today’s USA Today report confirms that this is the case, despite White House assurances that innocent Americans are not the target of electronic surveillance.
“Once again, it is clear that the president and the attorney general have lied to the American people,” said ACLU Executive Director Anthony D. Romero. “The NSA spying program is not only focused on terrorists or international calls. The government is clearly tracking the calls and communications of millions of ordinary Americans and that’s just plain wrong. This news serves only as further proof of how far we have slid into an abuse of power that undercuts the values Americans hold dear.
“Congress needs to analyze what intelligence is gathered, who is responsible for gathering it, and what actions will truly keep us safe,” Romero added. “We can no longer accept hollow, government assurances while they stubbornly refuse to answer questions about the NSA operations. These latest revelations should serve as further proof that this administration does not have satisfactory answers to these vital questions.”
The ACLU noted that there has never been a more urgent need to preserve fundamental privacy protections and our system of checks and balances than the need we face today. This latest transgression transcends the bounds of law and our most treasured values in the name of national security.
“Today’s revelation about the NSA’s data-mining program only further proves our point that Congress must fully investigate the Bush administration’s illegal NSA wire-tapping program,” said Caroline Fredrickson, Director of the ACLU Washington Legislative Office. “This warrantless database violates the constitutionally protected privacy rights of all Americans. This latest revelation serves as a clear signal that the administration’s no-holds-barred approach to ignoring the law governing electronic surveillance has reached new levels. The ACLU has urged the Senate Judiciary Committee to investigate NSA spying before attempting to legislate blindly on the issue.
While Congress is investigating that, maybe they should also take some time to investigate the hypocritical practices of the ACLU delving into its own members’ private financial information. After all, that is much more intrusive, and has nothing to do with national security.
The American Civil Liberties Union is using sophisticated technology to collect a wide variety of information about its members and donors in a fund-raising effort that has ignited a bitter debate over its leaders’ commitment to privacy rights.
Some board members say the extensive data collection makes a mockery of the organization’s frequent criticism of banks, corporations and government agencies for their practice of accumulating data on people for marketing and other purposes.
Yes, a mockery indeed.
The group’s new data collection practices were implemented without the board’s approval or knowledge and were in violation of the ACLU’s privacy policy at the time, according to Michael Meyers, vice president of the organization and a frequent internal critic. He said he had learned about the new research by accident Nov. 7 during a meeting of the committee that is organizing the group’s Biennial Conference in July.
He objected to the practices, and the next day, the privacy policy on the group’s Web site was changed. “They took out all the language that would show that they were violating their own policy,” Meyers said. “In doing so, they sanctified their procedure while still keeping it secret.”
After spending 23 years on the ACLU board, the “defenders of free speech” issued gag orders to him, not to speak about the issue.
The people who are trying to gag my speech and Wendy Cabman’s (ph) speech, they are the enemies of freedom. They are the enemies of free speech. And we’re not going to concede the control of the ACLU to these renegades who are trying to hijack the ACLU.
Talk about compromising your values. This is the most hypocritical organization out there! Can someone please gag their whining? I’m tired of hearing about it. The ACLU have absolutely no room to talk on this issue. Perhaps they should practice their right to remain silent.
See Bush’s explanation to the NSA program at Expose The Left
Michelle Malkin mentions more posturing in the beltway.
And I’ve been waiting all day…finally the Captain weighs in.….oohhh and another video on the topic at Expose The Left.
» Filed Under ACLU, News, War On Terror
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11 Responses to “ACLU Has Massive Database Of Its Members’ Financial Information”
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I think most people can tell the difference between the info they give to one person: the ACLU, the phone company, and the info the government gets.
I’m done talking to you because you are completely ignorant. You don’t give your financial info to the ACLU, they snoop and get it…much worse than a simple phone number. This is the last time I respond to you until you learn how to read.
Huh? Explain this comparison to me. You bring up the ACLU’s past data mining as a way of saying it’s OK for the federal government to do it? This might just be the definition of a non sequitur.
Or are you possibly saying that they’re both terribly wrong for what they’re doing?
If people could read before they post, it would be ever so appreciated. What I am saying is…wrong or right..the ACLU has no room to talk on this issue.
I’m pointing out hypocrisy.
Is that really what you’re saying, or are you trying to divert attention from the NSA?
Jay… I’m telling you man… Don’t allow them to comment if they can’t read.
It’s morons like gdummy and Brainless combined with Private Moronic (although it is a little unfair to lump him in with the other 2, at least he is respectful and maintains his own blog) that give the trolling bats their rep. Do you want to know why we hate trolling moonbats so much, because they all think that they are superior to the rest of us. That because they are the products of expensive educations at progressive schools that they somehow have more knowledge than the rest of us as far as how the world turns. When the fact is that these sheltered morons don’t have a clue. They spend a tremendous amount of money on educations that get them no further ahead than the rest of us because despite the fancy degrees, they are still brain dead.
Guys,
While Uncle Sam was busy trolling your phone record to corroborate your American Idol vote, OBL roames free…
Maybe instead of wasting lives and treasure in Iraq and pissing all over the Bill of Rights, the Bush Administration might actually focus on capturing the guy that is responsible for 9/11.
‘Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom.
It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves.’ William Pitt
The ACLU: Wrong every time they open their mouth.
These guys are quite idiotic. You see how they want to only focus on capturing those responsible for 9/11 when there are other terrorists out there wanting to attack us ten times that heavy. These people are not interested in programs to stop that from happening again. They don’t understand how deep this war is…they just want to catch one man, and think this will be victory. This is war, not some petty crime. Once we do get Osama, I bet you guys want to give him a trial here in America where a jury will feel sorry for his bad childhood, etc.
Jay,
If it is war, then it is war without end, right? After all, what constitutes victory? Kinda Orwellian, don’t you think?
Trolling Aunt Suzy’s American Idol vote will not prevent another terrorist attack. It is an incredible invasion of privacy and, equally as important, a waste of finite resources. Each dollar spent reviewing my Dominoes pizza order is one dollar less spent getting the 9/11 plotters.
The terrorists cannot defeat us militarily – they know that. How they can defeat us is by making us foresake the very values and principles they so despise – liberty, enterprise, tolerance. These are the values that the rest of the world admires in us. With each erosion of our liberty, we are actually handing the bad guys a victory.
As for capturing one man (or killing), well, it would be a start, wouldn’t it? It would keep us focused, rather than wasting lives, treasure and time in Iraq.
Don’t assume that a person who questions government tyranny is soft on terror. I’ve been to Afghanistan and done my part while many others sat in their armchairs. You have a valid argument, but comments like, “I bet you guys want to give him a trial here in America where a jury will feel sorry for his bad childhood, etc” are pretty pathetic.
Capt Rational, read the name of my blog..my primary reason for blogging is to expose the ACLU,so this provided an opportunity to bring that more attention.
Get Real…get real. Everything is Orwellian to your paranoids. Why would the government care about what pizza you ordered, or who you voted for on American Idol? Most paranoid people have something to hide. What is it that you are hiding? America needs to get real about this threat…because the terrorists don’t give a damn about making us forsake our values…the ACLU does just fine on that one. The terrorist want to kill. How about the liberty of life? Doesn’t it count?
Take a look at history. We did what we had to in history, and if temporarily suspending a few liberties is what it took…we did what we had to, and we won. What is really gonna get us all killed is this pansy political correctness B.S. America needs to wake up and do what needs to be done, or you will be right…the war will be neverending. What makes it so hard to have victory is all of the obstruction from our own political left in the country.
You can argue all you want to about not going after Osama, but that is a completely different debate, and a straw man argument on this topic.
One more thing to all of you new guys disagreeing with me. I like to debate if my schedule allows, but it is a waste of my time if the debate is not constructive. I am open minded, but unless I see that the debate is actually making a difference, and that we are approaching some sort of middle ground…then I see no reason to continue wasting my time. So, if you want to debate you will have to keep your mind open to different points of view as well.