ACLU Chief Calls on President to Shut Down “Illegal Spying on Americans”
Posted on January 31, 2006
The State of Our Union Cannot be Strong if the President Continues to Violate the Law,” Says Anthony D. Romero, Executive Director of the ACLU
In a news release, and brand new full page ad in the NY Times, the ACLU is accusing the President of spying on what you order from Pizza Hutt. They are calling the program illegal, and on the eve of the State of the Union are asking the President to shut down, what many Americans believe to be a vital program to protect Americans.
NEW YORK - The president has an opportunity in his State of the Union address tonight to allay the concerns of millions by abandoning his illegal program of warrantless domestic spying, conducted by the most secretive entity in government — the National Security Agency.
Concerns of millions????
We hope the president will do that, but we fear he will not. Instead, we expect President Bush to continue to aggressively claim sweeping authority to override congressional statutes and the courts when it comes to invading our privacy.
He has said that this program is legal, not because he or his advisors can point to any particular law authorizing it (and indeed legal scholars and national security experts can point to laws explicitly saying the opposite), but because he has merely assumed the powers as commander in chief. Despite the recent public relations offensive, the president’s warrantless and secret spying program has come under attack from Democrats and Republicans alike.
To be clear, this program is not lawful. No matter how many times the president claims his actions are legal, they are not. They violate the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) as well as the First and Fourth Amendments to the Constitution, and they pose serious threats to the constitutional checks and balances on presidential power that serve to protect our individual liberties.
A great nation rules itself through laws, not people. We need independent judges making sure that domestic spying is actually targeting the right people. We know from history that giving the president a blank check, especially in the context of national security, is a recipe for abuse.
The American people deserve to know how far afield the warrantless NSA surveillance has gone from targeting actual terrorists. Security experts confirm that “collateral” surveillance — otherwise known as spying on innocent people — is part of the game when you circumvent judicial oversight in the manner the NSA is said to have done.
We also know that the Justice Department had serious concerns about the program. Top officials, including Deputy Attorney General James Comey, had apparently questioned the legality of the surveillance. Rank-and-file agents reportedly started to joke that the intelligence gleaned from the spying was so unreliable that a new batch of tips meant more “calls to Pizza Hut.” It bears noting that the very individuals who now claim that the NSA program is illegal may be the ones who broke the law in the first instance.
Even if so, let it be known now that I don’t consider what I like on my pizza to be a private matter. I like the works! This is nothing more than opportunistic propaganda on the part of the ACLU. Of course they are to be expected to use the day of the State of the Union to attempt to coat tail their propaganda begging for the President to shut down a National Security program.
If the president does not call an immediate end to this illegal spying, Congress must hold thorough hearings. The Justice Department must also appoint a special counsel to investigate the breadth and legality of the NSA spying program.
As Americans, we believe that the state of our union cannot be strong if the president continues to violate our Constitution and our most fundamental freedoms. Because the Bush administration has shown its disdain for accountability and its critics, we have taken our case directly to the American people. Today, we ran paid national newspaper advertisements detailing the administration’s disturbing record on civil liberties, and calling for the appointment of a special counsel to investigate the NSA spying program. The NSA scandal is merely the culmination of five years of disdain for the Constitution. These practices must end now.
As Americans, many of us believe that the state of our union cannot be strong if the ACLU continually continues to attack our government’s defense programs, and our most fundamental right to life. The ACLU has shown its disdain for every program our government has implemented to protect its citizens. I call on every patriotic American to let the ACLU know…these practices must end now!
Contact: media@aclu.org
In related news, Sen. Russell Feingold charged yesterday that Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales misled the Senate during his confirmation hearing a year ago when he appeared to try to avoid answering a question about whether the president could authorize warrantless wiretapping of U.S. citizens.
Michelle Malkin ask: What do you want the President to address tonight? I hope he addresses the NSA stuff, and I’m pretty sure he will. With propaganda like this out there, America needs to hear the truth about how it protects us. I’d love to hear him take on the ACLU directly about their charges, though I doubt that will happen. Still, he should make it clear on how neccessary this program is to the protection of America.
» Filed Under ACLU, News, War On Terror
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19 Responses to “ACLU Chief Calls on President to Shut Down “Illegal Spying on Americans””
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Oh Brother! Actually this whole debate about the spying thing just erks me. But then again I have nothing to hide. If the Fed’s wanna know if I order pepperoni or broccoli and anchovies…so be it.
Nice to see them giving aide and comfort to the enemy. They seem to be Bin Laden’s cheering squad…
How about listening for our protection?
I have a personal message for the ACLU:
Bite me…
Where were these guys when the Feds searched Aldrich Ames’ house? Does the catch phrase “In our America” convenitently omit the years 1992-2000? Then again, what would you expect from the Association for Communist Left-wing Unintelligibility? Yeah, what TexasFred said….
When is the American public going to understand that the ACLU stands for everything un-American? This is nothing but a communist front and always has been. The lawyers that make this sick mechanism work are a disgrace to the legal system. Talk about a need for tort reform!
Folks, we have to wake up and insure that the funding and donations for this warped organization stop so it will wither on the vine and blow away.
Related Post:
What Won’t Be in the State of the Union Address Tonight
http://ginacobb.typepad.com/gina_cobb/2006/01/state_of_the_un.html
With the amount of fight the ACLU is putting up over the NSA “Domestic Spying” Program, it makes you wonder if maybe they have something to hide.
We just need to have the goverment declare them a terrorist organization and be done with it.
I also have a message for the ACLU..NaaNaaNanBooBoo~!
http://users.chartertn.net/tonytemplin/FBI_eyes/
I have a very significant message for the ACLU……..I second BITE ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This whole thing makes me sick! As A conservative Die hard Christian and a theologian I denounce President Bush for circumventing our constitution in the name of “saftey” This is in violation of the constitution and the word of God. Furthermore Michelle Malkin is a communist traitor who should be shot dead! So should our communist president. This whole idea of intimidating people into going along with this ridiculous plan of compromising our civil liberties is just one more page right out of the red book of communism.
As I have stated on my website, the only solution to this is to round up and deport all Muslims living in our nation. They are anti freedom, anti Christian, and terrorist. The Koran states that Muslims are to forcibly convert or kill all non muslim infidels. You’re not a real Muslim if you don’t believe that. Afterwards we should have all the prisoners in Gitmo rounded up, put on a fair trial and all convicted prisoners will be killed immediatly. Finally we should have our president impeached and replaced with a real man of faith who will not give in to presure by communist marxists in our country who want to destroy us. May America Bless God and may the ACLU be destroyed!
Hmm, you all are so darned right, the lack of candor about this program is just what we need. Because after all with the Defense Department spying on Quakers, this program will only be used for good, not evil. Just remember that once this is broken it’s not getting fixed, especially if HillRod becomes the next pres.
EXACTLY! Once Hillary Sodom Arafat that animal gets into office, THE USA WILL BECOME THE USSA! I think it is already sometimes but just wait till that cow gets into office!
BTW! I urge you all to visit a website that belongs to my freinds, http://www.jtf.org this website is leading the fight against Clinton just like it did ten years ago. Hopefully we can ruin her reputation enough that she wont become a real threat!
Kyle Prince!
Are you out of your mind or just so full of hate that you are out to give Christians a bad name? I do agree with you about what Muslims stand for but stating Michelle Malkin and President Bush should be shot is beyond the pale and outright foolish. In case you didn’t know, making a threat against the President of the United States is a Federal crime. You did just that! You had better hope that this web site isn’t monitored by the Secret Service.
Keep your inflammitory retoric directed against a real communist agency, the ACLU.
Please, let’s send a squadron of Marines to the ACLU Office, round them all up and take them to Git’mo for a year or two — get a warrant first (it’s Treason! )..
Kyle Prince
Open letter to NSA:
Please do not waste any tax dollars eaves dropping on me or my pizza parlor and violating my civil rights. I will save you time and effort and preserve my freedom. I like cheese and sausage pizza.