JUSTICE Act: a bill to restore the Bill of Rights to America
EFF Supports JUSTICE Bill to Reform the USA PATRIOT Act and Repeal Telecom Immunity
Today, Senators Russ Feingold and Dick Durbin -- along with eight other Senators -- have taken the Administration up on its offer by introducing the JUSTICE Act, which would rein in the worst excesses of PATRIOT and last year's FISA Amendments Act (FAA). The announcement of the bill's introduction, along with a fact sheet outlining the bill's details, is here; the text of the JUSTICE Act is here (the "JUSTICE", if you're wondering, stands for Judiciously Using Surveillance Tools In Counterterrorism Efforts").The JUSTICE Act would renew two of the three expiring PATRIOT provisions, PATRIOT sections 206 (John Doe roving wiretaps) and 215 (FISA orders for any tangible thing), but would also add strong new checks and balances to those provisions and to the PATRIOT Act in general, especially those provisions dealing with the government's authority to issue National Security Letters. If passed, the bill would also establish critically important protections for Americans against surveillance authorized under the FAA. Of particular importance to EFF's clients in the Hepting v. AT&T case and to the preservation of the rule of law, JUSTICE would completely repeal the FAA provision intended to legally immunize telecoms like AT&T that illegally assisted in the National Security Agency's warrantless wiretapping program. Last summer when Congress passed the FAA, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid stated his intention to revisit that law as part of the PATRIOT renewal debate, and we're very glad that Senators Feingold and Durbin have kick-started that process.
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Woo hoo! I've been waiting for this one. The Dec 31 deadline still seems pretty far away. It would be great if this could go through as quickly as the original PATRIOT act.
I'm right with you nosehat, glad to see one of senators is behind this too.
Glad to see this.
How come the scariest, most authoritarian jack-booted thuggery always seems to have the word "patriot" associated with it?
That's my senator!
Memo to self, donate generously to Feingold's reelection campaign...he is made of awesome.
@Danlalan:
I was wondering how come the scariest, most authoritarian jack-booted thuggery always seems to get fast-tracked?
But you're right about "patriot". Somehow that's became a dirty word for me, which is ridiculous since I aspire to be a "patriot" myself in many ways: I love and support the ideals upon which the US was founded. But, yeah, "patriot" really leaves a bad taste in my mouth.
"My seven letter acronym could beat up your seven letter acronym any day of the week!"
I've never donated to the EFF before, but this has compelled me to.
I'm not even American, but I think this sets a precedent internationally.
Word to #7. Thanks for the help. Lord knows we need it.
Little typo FAA is the Federal Aviation Administration. The FCC is the Federal Communications Commission.
A truly free man (or woman) would not ask his master not to tighten the shackles too tight!
What are we doing here, what is going on? They are so few, we are so many!
this act is scary and is an invasion on your private space with the use of patriotism to justify it
You forget that a majority of citizens actually favor this bull-oney that's going on. Before you can correct anything you have to do something about John Q. Public or he will undo all your efforts.
Not going to pass. Despite having an almost bulletproof majority, the Democrats are still too terrified of the right wing noise machine. The bill won't get enough votes and in 2010 the Democrats will lose a few more House seats, making serious erosion of the Patriot Act impossible.
"Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel."
-- Samuel Johnson (Boswell's Life of Johnson)
PATRIOTISM, n.
Combustible rubbish ready to the torch of any one ambitious to illuminate his name.
In Dr. Johnson's famous dictionary patriotism is defined as the last resort of a scoundrel. With all due respect to an enlightened but inferior lexicographer I beg to submit that it is the first.
-- Ambrose Beirce (The Devil's Dictionary)
We have lost our way and stepped backward in recent years. In the wake of Sept.11th, 2001 I was afraid, not of terrorists, but of the policies of an administration whose actions undermined our freedoms and ideals.
It was like McCarthyism and fearing Russian nukes all over again- and it was about good old fashioned racism above any patriotism. Muslim and African Americans were now more suspect and the objects of discrimination and unfair treatment than ever. I didn't fear terrorist attacks. I feared being singled out if I seemed suspicious or 'unamerican'. I feared a government that could possibly hold me without trial, use torture, or otherwise suspend my rights at the hint of paranoid and baseless suspicions of terrorism. I couldnt use my phone or email for fear someone was listening lest I be a terrorist.
They did not care about our security- only about exerting more control through unprecidented acts and practices. It had nothing to do with freedom or security, and everything to do with making the powerful even more powerful, and giving sadistic persons in the police, military, or government agencies the go ahead to do as they pleased unchecked.
Our government had become the terrorists- playing on our fears and using intimidation on its own citizens in this witch hunt. I began to fear the people supposedly sworn to represent, protect, or serve us. I dont know what this country had become, but it certainly was not 'America'. It will be quite some time before I ever feel safe, not from terrorists- but from my own government. I was beginning to wonder if some of the conspiracy nuts were right.
Treating Katrina victims as criminals, the corruption of Haliburton, Blackwater, and some soldiers- who were no better morally than Saddam Hussein, the conduct of police at our political conventions, the militarization of our police forces, this was but the tip of the iceberg. The very much Orwellian Patriot Act was the nail in the coffin. -and its high time Americans who believe in freedom use their shovels and crowbars to undo some of the damage. -if such a thing is possible. Bravo to representatives who still believe in American ideals, I applaud their efforts. Let's pray they know what they are doing.
@danlalan:
Because the freaks that don't drape themselves in some almost-immune-to-attack ideology like patriotism or religion eventually get called out for being psychotic and are dealt with accordingly.
Who comes up with these acronyms? Like, is there a specific intern whose job description is "taking some Good Word and retro-fitting some phrase that kind of means what this bill does into that Good Word?"
I'm sure we can come up with some others:
The FREEDOM Act: For Relieving Everyone Everywhere's Dreams Of Monsters
The LIBERTY Act: Liberty Implies Bolstering Everyone's Right To Yodel
(... that one's recursive, which means it must be voted on by congress an infinite number of times.)
The AMERICA IS GREAT Act: ...
@nosehat
Oh, I know why jackbooted thuggery always gets fasttracked- some people always see other peoples fear as an opportunity to expand their authoritarian dreams (nightmares), and jump all over it whenever the opportunity presents itself. Look at the Japanese-American internment camps in WWII. Pure unadulterated racist fantasy, that. Understandable fear coupled to whacko ideology.
#13: "Despite having an almost bulletproof majority, the Democrats are still too terrified of the right wing noise machine."
You're absolutely right. And the noise machine gets louder every day. I find it so depressing when I read the blog responses on my local newspaper. It seems the wingnuts far outnumber the sensible, thoughtful folks.
There's a columnist in my local paper; he's FAR from a liberal, just one of those common sense type columnists from the old school, and every day he gets bombarded with "patriots" who litter his blog with abusive rhetoric. Most of them are simply parroting what they hear their heroes Limbaugh, Hannity, etc, spouting.
We need a constitutional convention. Any act can be overturned by the court or a subsequent act of congress.
Make the right to privacy explicit.
Make the requirements for warrants broader.
Make seizure of property subject to judicial review and a burden on the state to prove grounds for forfeiture.
Make freedom of information broader.
WOULD BE NICE but dont see it happening. I see a tarnished America with deep rust spots that wont rub out. I see a broken down uncle same digging a hole so deep he is half way to china and cannot even see daylight at high noon, I see injustice touted as justice, and destruction fear and death proclaimed help reconstruction and freedom, I see a battered and brainwashed public hiding in a corner, willing to give up its last few freedoms to fear mongering, I see empty homes up and down my street, I see more crime and corruption than ever before in any known civilization............
I see nothing good for our future and have chosen to not have children solely based on this. I want my old America back!
The title is misleading. They do not want to restore the Bill of Rights. They only want to restore their own little piece of it.
@KPS666 - The Patriot Act passed 357-66 and 98-1, Democrats are in control, yet it's still the fault of the right? Does not compute.
Your own fears, hide the crimes, in the patriots act
after the pain, to gain freedom, broke the patriots back
spend it all, we cant fall, deeper into the debt
what we say, when we say, its a code yellow threat
no longer, providing, the ways or the means
everyone, surviving, the american dream
this land is not your land, this land is not my land
it belongs to china france england and thailand
they will print more money, cut its worth in half
then all sit around watch it burn down and laugh
we just hit a speed bump, it was not a crash
but just to be safe, say goodbye to your ass(cash)
Uncle sam lost his job, his house and his car
now he sits there on pills, at the end of the bar
crying and sobbing, how did it go so wrong
and how did the weak overpower the strong
How did the few overpower the many
Freedoms and Rights, you feel like you have any?
your right to remain silent is what they hope for
instead go to their houses and knock on their doors.
Go let them all know that you wont stand for this
they could fall off the earth, and would not be missed
Its past time for talking and past time for lies
If only they could see through jeffersons eyes.
@#18: Let me try to compute this. Dems voted for PATRIOT because of the fear-mongering of the Reps. Dem weakness buckles to Rep lies. Checksum...OK.
If our President does not support this act then he has lost me, forever, and will be at the very least the sole reason I will refuse to vote in the next election.
The ill-named PATRIOT Act has done more to damage the standing of the U.S.A. in the world community than any other action (or inaction) in recent years (and SO MUCH has been done).
The Constitution is at the foundation of "What Makes America Great." And when the world watches our Great Document erode, particularly at the hands of those who swore and oath to protect it, we gain nothing but the pity of our supporters and the glee of our detractors.
The PATRIOT Act has done more to damage the U.S.A. and its citizenry than any terrorist could ever hope to deliver.
It's no far stretch to connect the PATRIOT Act to the current problems with the particular brand of citizen who questions the President's citizenship, and further extend it to that opportunistic, indecorous outburst during his address the other evening: if we cannot trust that our Government will always choose to uphold and rightly amend the Constitution, then how can we trust them otherwise?
When the victims of 9/11 met their undeserved fate, they had the dignity of dying as full-fledged Americans. The rest have been grievously compromised by the Bush Administration's panicked, ill-conceived and ultimately criminal response.
This may be an extreme view but I cannot help but feel its extremity is balanced by its validity.
I wish all of the lawmakers involved in this aptly named JUSTICE Act all the best of luck towards success.
If you read this, visit your Senator's web pages and tell them to get on board with the legislation. Heck, write to the President too. You can't just sit and hope something will happen. They are YOUR REPRESENTATION. But if you don't speak to them, they won't know what you want. That's why the whack-jobs seem to be winning. Telling them to shut up because they have no idea what they're shouting about is their cue to grab a bullhorn.
Hey, awesome boingboingers abroad, will you send us some good thoughts/energy for this?
LIBERTY Act: Let's Infringe Basically Everyone's Rights Today, Y'all!
Here's the letter I sent to Sen. Kerry and Rep. Capuano:
The only real talent you need to get stuff done in Washington is the ability to come up with good acronyms.
Vote for my Amendment to Whip Every Single Orphan for Malicious Entertainment! It's AWESOME!
#9: In this case, FAA refers to the FISA Amendment Act. It's an acronym within an acronym; not unlike a hall of mirrors, or a Turducken.
@#25 - There's plenty of blame to spread on both sides of the aisle. Didn't Moore in F/911 get McDermmit and Conyers (certainly not conservative icons) to admit they didn't even read the bill? Haven't we heard this before i.e. health care? The fear was rampart on all fronts back then.
Props to Feingold since he was the only one to vote against it in the first place. I'm just glad there still an effort to smash it up.
@anonymous #21
I see a tarnished America with deep rust spots that wont rub out.
I think you saw an America that only ever existed as an ideal in your own mind, and it sounds like you are finally seeing the world the way it has always been for the first time.
The United States has always been flawed, like all human endeavors are, but at least here opening your mouth won't get you shot, not yet anyway. The United States was born as a slave-holding nation, and it is hard for me to conceive of a more profound flaw in a nations makeup than to condone slavery. But slavery was abolished here because finally sufficient numbers of people said enough. You're depressed about how conditions are now? Our ancestors had to fight a war to eradicate that particular flaw. We can work on the current list of problems without the threat of civil war at least.
I see a broken down uncle same{sic} digging a hole so deep he is half way to china and cannot even see daylight at high noon, I see injustice touted as justice, and destruction fear and death proclaimed help reconstruction and freedom, I see a battered and brainwashed public hiding in a corner, willing to give up its last few freedoms to fear mongering, I see empty homes up and down my street, I see more crime and corruption than ever before in any known civilization.
Are you serious? Ever hear of the crusades? How about the inquisition? And don't forget the aforementioned institution of slavery. A few hundred years spiritual leaders in the west sent out the faithful to kill people who thought differently with “Gods blessing”. And lest you forget, we are the public, dude. Yes, there are frightened sheep among us who are foolishly willing to give up rights in return for a promise of safety. But not everyone is like this. The worst thing we can do is throw our hands up and cede the field to those who want to take our liberties.
I see nothing good for our future and have chosen to not have children solely based on this. I want my old America back!
You want back an America that is yet to exist. You and I and the rest of us are responsible for what America will be.
"Sell not virtue to purchase wealth, nor Liberty to purchase power."
They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.
B Franklin
Just saying....
Repeal of Telecom Immunity - because you need something to give away in negotiations.
I still give to the EFF, but let's not fool ourselves.
Talk by Naomi Wolf: The End of America.
This seem like a good start, but perhaps I am missing something, I have never understood why it is that all of the intrusive measures ( reading e-mail, deep packet inspection etc.) are not treated like opening peoples mail, Federal employees CAN open your mail if they have a warrant or probable cause to believe there is some sort of immanent threat, these rules don't seem to apply in this context and never really have since the argument has alway's been made that these are private enterprises and they can largely do what they like with their own PRIVATE infrastructure. but the post office is also a private enterprise so can anyone tell me why ISPs can open my packets when the post office can't open my mail, or is the answer really "because we have the guns".
Never mind in posing the question I have answered myself
"Restoration" would mean repealing the ENTIRE "Patriot" Act.
This is what happens when you succumb to the neo-con technique of "reframing the debate": they continually take more and more extreme positions as soon as the last one becomes publicly acceptable. By attempting to be reasonable in the face of an unreasonable opposition, the EFF and other pro-freedom organizations have shot liberty in the foot.
I'll be writing my letters anyway, but this is just the start of a very long battle. Liberty is not profitable for the government, nor for big business -- which is why both the Republicans and Democrats oppose it, and why it is so difficult to keep.
How many of you use Google Maps. Looked at someone's house lately. Guilty of invading my privacy all in the name of your fun??
Look away at my closets Mr. Government. I have nothing to hide and if you have any questions, I'll be glad to answer anything you need. I understand you have an obligation to keep my neighbors and fellow citizens safe and I am glad to help.
People, if you are afraid to show your sheets, one wonders what stains are on those sheets. Who are you in bed with?
You, the paranoid about big brother, need to remember, we are all obligated as citizens to keep this country safe. If you have nothing to hide what are you worried about? If your running life and business in accordance with the laws, what's your issues? You can't be prosecuted for opinions only actions.
You share more about your life on my space and then worry what the government knows? Holy cow. Really?
SORRY.
Gang, I had to let the Anonymous comment, above, through. Just for the pure unadulterated troll of it. It's beautiful.
Thanks Anonymous39, you made my day.
Imagine if that was real, woo hoo!
arkizzle, It takes all kinds to fill a freeway.
"..all kinds to fill a freeway.
..all kinds of nuts to make a trail(mix).