I was interviewed yesterday in an extraordinary case out of South Florida where Attorney Marshall Dore Louis faced a problem that phone records material to his defense of a car robbery suspect have disappeared. Accordingly, he is seeking the records from one resource that has stored every call from every citizen: the National Security Agency (NSA). After all, the Administration has admitted the existence of the storage and program. After that, Dore is arguing that it is just another government agency with material evidence. Indeed, the NSA wanted a complete record of all calls to store and it is now being called upon to hand over material evidence in its possession.
Clearly, NSA views this program as a one way street and will not yield willingly to being a resource of litigators. The interesting question will be how it now objects. In the past, the government has refused to confirm such programs but it has now done so. In February, the Administration succeeded in blocking a challenge to its surveillance policies by arguing that any confirmation of such programs would put American lives at risk. Now that the case is dismissed, they have simply acknowledged the program. The decision is Clapper v. Amnesty International, No. 11-1025, and it is a true nightmare for civil liberties. The Supreme Court rejected the standing of civil liberties groups and citizens to challenge the Obama Administration’s surveillance programs. President Obama has long been criticized for his opposition to such lawsuits and his Justice Department has continued a successful attack on the ability of citizens to challenge the unconstitutional actions of their government in the war on terror. The 5-4 opinion by Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. insulates such programs from judicial review in yet another narrowing of standing rules.
While insisting that disclosing such programs would put lives at risk to secure the dismissal of the Clapper case, the Administration readily did so a couple months later. That has not only removed the prior national security barrier but has raised questions over the truth of Clapper’s own testimony.
Dore says that the prosecutors have informed him that a month of the records of defendant Terrance Brown are missing for two phones. His provider, MetroPCS, says it has no longer has them. Then Dore was reading the newspapers and found an agency who helpfully collected all calls for all citizens. If the program is no longer secret and the calls were obtained directly from the carriers (without some secret method or device), what is the objection from the government beyond that it finds such requests a hassle. Are they ready to come to court and say that they are the government and they are not here to actually help citizens . . . just spy on them.
It is particularly ironic to seek access to this program to protect due process after the program itself blew away so many other constitutional rights. It is like an 11th Century Englishman stopping some Vikings for directions. They would like respond “we really are not there to help you.”
The government is likely going to win but it will be fascinating to watch them deal with the demand.
Source: Politico
** A new report by the U.S. Army War College talks about the possibility of Pentagon resources and troops being used should the economic crisis lead to civil unrest, such as protests against businesses and government or runs on beleaguered banks **
Dredd,
We could/should ask why does the US Army War College think people might get angry & protest?
Well it could be the people figure out some of these businesses are intentional poisoning them to the point they could die.
Take a look at this latest peer review study on GMO crops.
I believe this is just one piece of the many soft kill weapons being used against us all.:
GMO feed turns pig stomachs to mush! Shocking photos reveal severe damage caused by GM soy and corn
(NaturalNews) If you have stomach problems or gastrointestinal problems, a new study led by Dr. Judy Carman may help explain why: pigs fed a diet of genetically engineered soy and corn showed a 267% increase in severe stomach inflammation compared to those fed non-GMO diets. In males, the difference was even more pronounced: a 400% increase. (For the record, most autistic children are males, and nearly all of them have severe intestinal inflammation.)
http://www.naturalnews.com/040727_GMO_feed_severe_inflammation_pig_stomachs.html
NSA Director walks into a bar:
Bartender: “Hey, did you hear the one about…..”
NSA Director: Yep.
The cloud is beautiful!
I think we should all ask for refunds from ISP, phone companies and the govt.
“The government is likely going to win but it will be fascinating to watch them deal with the demand.”
Maybe not.
We have seen some tipping points.
The FISA court just ruled against the government in a case that started a FISA opinion website.
The government refused to release an 86 page opinion that held the government was violating the 4th Amendment with its NSA thingy.
The EFF went to FISC and they excoriated the government, and as icing on the cake, published the opinon on their new website.
The NSA is a military operation with a three or so star general as its head, collecting data from people it expresses some enmity towards:
(On The Origin of Security – 2). Let’s hope the lawyer is aware of some of this … so as to help him or her prevail.
Blouise, “And I suppose the incompetent “experts” at NSA couldn’t see this one coming?”, Yep, I think this is exactly the case. They never expected that this secret database would be unsecret. Thus, no thought to what might happen if it became public knowledge.
** The Absurdity of the US Ministry of Propaganda: People Quitting Jobs is a Sign of Confidence!
smartknowledgeu’s picture
Submitted by smartknowledgeu on 06/13/2013 06:39 -0400
China
headlines
KIM
Nouriel
SmartKnowledgeU
Vladimir Putin
Yen
mop
Today, as reported on ZeroHedge, Chinese dissident AiWeiwei declared, “The US is behaving like China.” Also this week, ex-CIA employee Edward Snowden’s revelation of massive US government spying on US citizens immediately drew comparisons to Nazi S.S. tactics, and to top it off, Russian President Vladimir Putin chided US President Obama’s declaration that “you can’t have 100% security and 100% privacy” by stating, “You can’t just listen to the phone call in Russia; you need a special order from court. This is how this should be done in civilized society while tackling terrorism with the use of any technical means. If it is in the framework of the law, then it’s ok. If not it is unacceptable.” All in all, not a good week for the 3-headed bankster-politician-military complex monster. So what do we need to make all zombies feel better? The US Ministry of Propaganda (known to all US citizens as the mainstream media) to come to the rescue, of course! Every week, the US financial media spouts so much rubbish, from Nouriel Roubini’s declaration that gold will crash, to declarations of “soaring” Japanese yen (a misleading semantics lesson I will shred in future articles), that often it is very difficult to select which article dispensed by the mainstream media is the most misleading of them all. **
http://www.zerohedge.com/contributed/2013-06-13/absurdity-us-ministry-propaganda-people-quitting-jobs-sign-confidence
On the one hand, I now have a single storage location for all of my telephone and email records. On the other, the NSA disclosures raise some interesting questions about the confidentiality of attorney-client communications. Will lawyers now have to rely solely on snail mail and in-person meetings with clients?
One thing I have mentioned before is that it’s taking to much time for everyone to address these one off important issues & this constant game of Whack-A-Mole.
From the very little I’ve been able to figure out about this USA Gestapo Spy Grid is that it tracks outwardly & inward.
That means to me it could/might be used to track those in/around govt, like congressmen, govt contractors,etc…, that are or have been engaged corruption, treason, vote rigging or other types govt tyranny.
Turn over the Data Feinstein & let everyone see who’s helping you destroy the country.
(And if she is doing nothing wrong she has nothing to worry about!)
The only problem with that idea I see is that this current USA Gestapo Spy Grid is completely illegal under the Constitution.
Next time some group of voters elects some guy or gal from Saturday Night Live to the Senate let it be Chevy Chase. Al Franken was a mistake. He looks dumb and looks like he went in dumb and come out dumb too. It turns out that he is dumb. Or a patsy for the Koch Brothers. No offense Patsy Kline.
All the lawyer needs here is a smidgeon of MegaData. What a great word they concocted. There was some national security expert on CNN last night explaining how this megadata was so important. Yeah, it would have kept nine Saudis with box cutters from getting on planes at Logan Airport. The NSA has not figured out Piglatin yet and neither has WordPress. But the NSA has figured out dolphin talk and dog talk, Be rest assured on that one. Baaark! Well, that one got by.
For clarity I’d add I believe those FBI agents are likely very p*ssed about their buddies accident & would also like to know the truth as to what happened to them.
Accidents happen, but this is another case that seems very odd.
I would file a notice of deposition of the head of the NSA, Keith whats his name, who has lied to Congress so much he looks like a clown. Is a liar to Congress a “betrayer”? Like Jeffrey Toobin who cheated on his wife and sired an out of wedlock kid and lied about it with two cheatin hearts, this NSA Head has lied to Congress. Traitors both, one to wifeypoo and the other to those who sit in Congress who are old, senile, deaf, dumb (more ways than involving the ears) and owned by the Koch Brothers. It all makes Bill Clintons story about not porkin the gal with the cigar look like small fish. I wouldn’t have had sex with that woman either Bill. Kind of cow face. But, the Clinton thing is neither here nor there or where he said it wasn’t. This NSA program is about the worst offense to national sovereignty since our Founding. Can someone find Feinstein a hearing aid? She must not have heard Clapper’s testimony or Keith, the Liar, whatshis name.
Before the American people dismantle this USA Gestapo system can we 1st get the records from NSA/etc…, so we can see the details of Holder & DHS & their now admitted drill to bomb Boston with backpacks earlier this year & their not admitted yet Marshal Law crack down drill afterwards.
I’d like also to hear what FBI agents think about their 2 FBI buddies that were working the Boston case & then a few weeks later both slipped & fell out of a helicopter.
Fast/Furious, etc.,etc….
Yes, just turn the Nazis camera around & aim them right back at the Nazis.
Unlikely to succeed but I agree it is delicious
I’m telling you, it can be obtained through back channels for probably less than 5 figures. Although, the chain of custody would be a problem.
And I suppose the incompetent “experts” at NSA couldn’t see this one coming?!
People seeking to make another a criminal do not know that their sinful body that dies is in Gods eyes criminal. That body decimates all life not able to living in Gods perfect light. knowing this why call anyone a criminal?
The irony of the situation is indeed delicious.
You’ve gotta love it, indeed!
Lol…. If they are held in the regular course of business…. What’s the objection…. Classic…. You gotta love it..,.