Following the report earlier this week that the FBI regularly broke the ECPA law, in obtaining information from telcos without going through the proper process (and, in some cases using just a post it note!), some interesting details from the full report have come to light. The two key ones? First, “the Obama administration issued a secret rule almost two weeks ago saying it was legal for the FBI to have skirted federal privacy protections.” And, second, the original idea to use these bogus “exigent letters” didn’t come from the FBI, but from an AT&T employee. We noted in the original report that no one seemed to be placing any blame on the telcos for allowing this, and why they’re clearly abusing the law, in giving out such info without the proper rules being followed, seems like a big question:
The telecom employees were supposed to be responding to National Security Letters, which are essentially FBI-issued subpoenas. But those Patriot Act powers say the target must be part of an open investigation and that a supervisor has to approve it. While they require some paperwork, FBI agents have been issuing about 40,000 such NSLs a year.
[via No Agenda News]
Should be Police State Update.
Wasn’t Bush blasted by the liberals for doing the same thing, CHANGE!!
Brown is “Change we can believe in”.
2010 will be “Change we can believe in”.
2012 WILL be the apocalypse for the Democratic Party.
Someone remind me again what the difference is between the Democrats and Republicans?
# 4
“what the difference is”
One is smooth and heavily tapered the other is lumpy with embedded corn kernels.
#4
The Republican Congress Critters are a bunch of wasteful, spend thrift, corrupt politicians.
The Democrat Congress Critters are the same only squared, cubed, and raised to the tenth power who want to control everything including when you fart.
A percentage of the population believes Congress Critters are demons that got kicked out of h**l for their misdeeds. Others claim Congress Critters are young demons in training thus their other commonly used name: h**l spawn. Others say that both claims are mere superstition. They assert that Congress Critters are merely successful white collar criminals.
Whatever.
What’s this have to do with the Patriot Act?
Nice. Yet the liberals still tell us to be afraid of the Republicans (and v-v.)
Deowll: I have a gift for you.
el
Already formatted in lowercase just perfect for putting in the middle of certain four letter words.
No, no. Don’t thank me. I’m happy to help.
The only change ever in DC is change for a dollar.
Ahem…. where is the evidence of this so called “secret law” signed by Obama? The article just says it exists, but provides zero evidence whatsoever.
Sounds like some made-up tea party propaganda being published as ‘journalism’ in this blog.
I heard that Palin is having another baby, this time with an outer space alien. My evidence is because I say so.
Here is the report (pdf). Why is you Obama apologists won’t dig this shit up yourselves?
And on page 288-289, Section III.
The FBI broke the law. But that’s ok I guess as long as it’s documented.
The only problem with democracy is that after you vote the old corrupt bastards out, you’re stuck with the new corrupt bastards you voted in.
Despite all the headlines this has generated that attribute this “ruling” to Obama himself, this concerns a legal opinion issued by the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel, interpreting certain provisions of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act. Without seeing the legal opinion, it’s impossible to tell which of the FBI’s practices during the time frame covered by the report (2003-2007) are being called legal and which ones are not. Because this has significant policy implications going forward, the Inspector General’s report recommends that the opinion be review by Congress.
Senators Feingold, Durbin, and Wyden have already issued a request to Attorney General Holder to see the OLC’s opinion immediately. In my opinion, Durbin and Wyden are a little sketchy, but Russ Feingold is like a pit bull on matters of privacy.
I can’t believe Bush is getting away with this, he is slowly taking away our rights and turning this great country into a police state. F**k him! Oh wait, never mind, nothing to see here, all is well!
I’m sure I’m not the only one who is bothered when the government eavesdrops on citizens. It smells on the surface of it and there is no justification. “But criminals…” “But terrorists…” NO NO NO and again NO, you slimy, prying bitch. Stay out of my life.
#12 LibertyLover (should be renamed LiarLover):
Hey… nice link… too bad that it says absolutely NOTHING about some secret law passed by Obama two weeks ago… the document that you quote is an investigation of violations done by the FBI through the beginning of 2008… in other words THE BUSH YEARS.
Did you even read the document?
I am still waiting for one iota of evidence that this so called “secret law” was passed by Obama allowing the FBI to do the types of wiretapping described by the OP. Anything but a “Because I say so”? Anything?
It is nothing but Tea-Party liars propaganda. Now watch Glenn Beck and other LiarLover heroes pick up on this and pass it on as fact, without a shred of evidence, and watch the ‘moron party’ follow it as truth.
LiarLover… care to try again and prove the lies?
Obama is your standard issue fascist. White people are shocked that a black man could be so conservative and right wing, but get used to it people. He wouldn’t have been elected if he wasn’t Israel’s bitch and a corporate whore.
I read the Cherman’s post. This is what I walked away with.
#1 Obama made a ruling. Really? And it was quiet? My first thought was I didn’t know he was a judge.
#2 The telco gave the FBI info without proper procedure. Really? So the telco broke the rule? How is the fbi at fault here, again?
#3 FBI requires to issue ‘some’ paperwork? Really? Except a post it note?
#4 The idea to use ‘exigent letters’ was from the telcos? Really?
Even gluing the above feathers together could still not make a chicken. We need more feathers, Cherman.
#17, secret law
The only person trying to turn a “secret ruling” into a “secret law” is you.
There is nothing in the article or the title to suggest it is a law.
How you even read the post you are responding to?
Wow, we are so screwed.
Next up,
Obama issues ruling allowing indentured servitude to resolve bad credit.
Go ahead and laugh, it might not be issued by Obama but will probably come from a Democrat because the left has the loudest complainers and when we loose rights from a democrat that makes it okay for them.
Yup, if this is true it’s a bitter disappointment for us liberals who supported Obama. But what are you wingnuts complaining about? You loved this sh*t when Dubya was doing it. When us liberals complained about Dubya violating our civil rights, you called us terrorist lovers and asked why we hate America. Now, when Obama does the same thing, you’re all offended. WTF?
So why was were you OK with Dubya violating our civil rights but not OK with Obama doing the same thing?
Silly wingnuts.
#24 We slammed Dumbya and we started to slam Obama then for its support. And you sheeple were dismissing Obama’s support to the thing.
If there were any “conservatives” criticizing Dubya’s actions they were few and far between. You want to claim you were one of that tiny minority, fine… just don’t expect us to believe you. Y’all are embarrassed about your support of Dubya, it’s obvious. That’s good, shows some measure of critical thinking. There may be hope for you yet.
There is the huge bloated federal bureaucracy and then there’s the buffoons the idiot masses believe and vote into office. No one elected official can effectively control it, they can only hang on and siphon some of the tax dollars off to their friends. Look at the before and after pictures of all the presidents – very telling of the toll the ride takes from them. Like a hemorrhoid, the only solution to the out-of-control government is to lance and shrink it by throttling the money it needs to bloat itself. Allowing the govt to access and control more money is the wrong thing to do.