3/28/2023 0 Comments Verizon system stamp ipilek![]() ![]() ![]() The Fisa court is in the habit of granting wide approval to the government. "We need to have a full debate, an open debate, about what the law is, what it should be, with a full opportunity to amend it." "We can't really propose changes to the law unless we know what the words mean as interpreted by the court," Merkley told the Guardian. Senator Jeff Merkley, an Oregon Democrat, called on the Fisa court to declassify its understanding of crucial terms of that section of the Patriot Act – such as "tangible items" that are "related to an investigation". "If that constitutes relevance for purposes of Section 215 – or for purposes of grand jury subpoena, for that matter," Wittes wrote on Wednesday, "then isn't all data relevant to all investigations?" There is no indication in Vinson's order of any connection between the surveillance and any crime, foreign espionage or terrorist plot.īenjamin Wittes, a Brookings Institution scholar and editor of the influential national-security blog Lawfare, was surprised by the scope of the request – and by Vinson's approval of it. Vinson certified that the surveillance on millions of Americans, which continues until 19 July, meets legal and evidentiary standards under a provision of the Patriot Act. On 25 April 2013, judge Roger Vinson approved a request for the National Security Agency to collect all phone records over lines run by Verizon Business Services, including telephone numbers and call durations, on an "ongoing, daily basis". The Guardian published one of them on Wednesday. In its 35 years of existence, only a handful of its rulings have ever made their way into public view. Its records are almost always classified. Its only petitioners come from the government. He added: "There is a rigorous review process of applications submitted by the executive branch, spearheaded initially by five judicial branch lawyers who are national security experts and then by the judges, to ensure that the court's authorizations comport with what the applicable statutes authorize."Ĭharged with oversight of some of the US government's most sensitive intelligence activities, the Fisa court is a rare judicial body that does not operate in an adversarial manner. "The perception that the court is a rubber stamp is absolutely false," he told the Guardian. "It is a kangaroo court with a rubber stamp," said Russell Tice, a former National Security Agency analyst.īut in a rare public statement about the court's operations, Walton rejected the charge. Civil libertarians have long been alarmed that it approves the vast majority of government surveillance requests. Set up by Congress to act as a check on the government's broad surveillance powers, it operates in secret, with minimal public access to its deliberations or rulings. The court, which was established in 1978 and which operates out of the E Barrett Prettyman United States Courthouse near Capitol Hill, rarely provides a glimpse into its operations. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |