I love the idea of the USA. I really like most Americans!
The country has been undermined tragically by the actions of the previous President and Vice-President.
The USA is an idea based on the words of the Constitution and the “Bill of Rights”.
Those are the amendments to the US Constitution
The two key amendments that guarantee individual rights are:
The First Amendment:
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”
and
The Fourth Amendment:
“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”
Well the Patriot Act and warrantless wiretapping has violated the first amendment!
Guess what, the Patriot Act and the legislation establishing the wide ranging (unlimited) powers of the Department of Homeland Security violates the Fourth Amendment.
With the “War on Terror” as an excuse, No American has no privacy. Your internet search history, your library loans, and your history of purchases or rentals are all available to DHS and the police. Did you ever see TV news footage of a police seizure of computers and business records? Why do they seize monitors, mice and keyboards? That is stupid and unreasonable. Wiretapping and Internet tracking without warrants also is constitutes searching of your house, papers (or equivalent) and effects (your personal information).
The Bush/Cheney Administration radically and in some cases irreversibly undermined your rights! Nearly all these rights have yet to be restored!
What support is there for my opinions? Is this just Anti-Americanism?
Read on!
Bush’s appointments to the Supreme Court shifted the court to a “Law and Order” oriented as opposed to a “Human Rights” orientation.
That Supreme Court radically broadened the scope of documents and information which can be deemed classified. Link
The National Security Agency (NSA) set up Project Groundbreaker, a domestic call monitoring program infrastructure Link
Bush administration order authorized the NSA monitoring of domestic phone and internet traffic Link
After 9/11 Department of Justice authorized detention without charge for any terror suspects. Over one thousand suspects were brought into detention over the next several months. Link
Under Bush/Cheney Attorney General John Ashcroft announced change in Department of Justice (DOJ) policy. The new policy imposed far more stringent criteria for the granting of Freedom of Information Act requests Link
The NSA launched massive new database of information on US phone calls Link
USA Patriot Act:
- makes it a crime for anyone to contribute money or material support for any group on the State Department’s Terror Watch List,
– allows the FBI to monitor and tape conversations between attorneys and clients,
– allows the FBI to order librarians to turn over information about patron’s reading habits,
– allows the government to conduct surveillance on internet and email use of US citizens without notice
> calls for expanded use of National Security Letters (NSLs), which:
- allows the FBI to search telephone, email and financial records of US citizens without a court order,
– exempts the government from needing to reveal how evidence against suspected terrorists was obtained and authorizes indefinite detention of immigrants at the discretion of law enforcement and immigration authorities
The Patriot Act is an assault on the Fourth Amendment, and on the First Amendment.
- It permits federal agents to write their own search warrants [under the name “national security letters”] with no judge having examined evidence and agreed that it’s likely that the person or thing the government wants to search will reveal evidence of a crime
- makes it a felony for the recipient of a self-written search warrant to reveal it to anyone.
- allows [agents] to serve self-written search warrants on financial institutions but take note:
The Intelligence Authorization Act of 2004 defines financial institutions to include in addition to banks, also”
> delis,
> bodegas,
> restaurants,
> hotels,
> doctors’ offices,
> lawyers’ offices,
> telephone companies,
> HMOs,
> hospitals,
> casinos,
> jewelry dealers,
> automobile dealers, >boat dealers,
> and even the post office
Sources: Link and Link
What else?
The FBI and the Department of Defense (DOD), which are forbidden by law from compiling databases on US citizens, began contracting with private database firm ChoicePoint to collect, store, search and maintain data
Link
Under Bush/Cheney a secret executive order was issued authorizing NSA to wiretap the phones and read emails of US citizens
Link
The Transportation Security Adminstration (TSA) created both a “No Fly” and a separate “Watch” list of US travelers. Link
Department of Justice authorizes the FBI to monitor political and religious groups. The new rules permit the FBI to broadly search or monitor the internet for evidence of criminal activity without having any tips or leads that a specific criminal act has been committed
Link
The Homeland Security Act of 2002 established the Department of Homeland Security DHS.
It is charged with the task of:
> federally coordinating all local and state law enforcement nationwide
> running a Directorate of Information and Analysis with authority to compile comprehensive data on US citizens using public and commercial records including credit card, phone, bank, and travel.
DHS is exempt form Freedom of Information Act disclosure requirements.
Its jurisdiction is defined and has extended beyond terrorism into areas including:
> immigration,
> pornography and
> drug enforcement
Link and Link
The Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2004 granted the FBI unprecedented power to obtain records from financial institutions without requiring permission from a judge. Under the law, the FBI does not need to seek a court order to access such records, nor does it need to prove just cause Link and Link
An Executive order was issued which radically tightens the declassification process of classified government documents, as well as making it far easier for government agencies to make and keep information classified
> allowed the government to treat all material sent to American officials from foreign governments—no matter how routine—as subject to classification, and
> expanded the ability of Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to shield documents from declassification.
> Finally it gave the vice president the power to classify information
Link and Link
The Supreme Court ruled that even permanent residents could be subject to mandatory detention when facing deportation based on a prior criminal conviction, without any right to an individualized hearing to determine whether they were dangerous or a flight risk
Link
The FBI changes its traditional policy of destroying all data and documents collected on innocent citizens in the course of criminal investigations. This information would, according to the bureau, now be permanently stored.
Executive Order 13388, expanded access to those files for “state, local and tribal” governments and for “appropriate private sector entities,” which are not defined
Link and Link
Under The Patriot Act, the FBI expands the practice of national security letters. NSLs, originally introduced for espionage and terrorism investigations, enabled the FBI to review in secret the customer records of suspected foreign agents. This was extended by the Patriot Act to include permitting clandestine scrutiny of all U.S. residents and visitors whether suspected of terrorism or not. Link
FBI began keeping a database of US citizens based on information obtained via NSLs
Link
Bush’s Attorney General John Ashcroft invoked State Secrets privilege to forbid former FBI translator from testifying in a case brought by families of victims of the 9–11 attacks. Litigation by 9–11 families is subsequently halted Link and Link
Supreme Court uphelds a Nevada state law allowing police to arrest suspects who refuse to provide identification based on police discretion of “reasonable suspicion” Link
Supreme court ruled that police do not need to have probable cause to have drug sniffing dogs examine cars stopped for routine traffic violations Link and Link
Supreme Court rules that the federal government can prosecute medical marijuana users even in states which have laws permitting medical marijuana Link
Senate passed amended version of Patriot Act, reauthorization, with three basic changes from the original including:
> recipients of secret court orders to turn over sensitive information on individuals linked to terrorism investigations are not allowed to disclose those orders but can challenge the gag order after a year,
> libraries would not be required to turn over information without the approval of a judge,
> recipients of an FBI “national security letter”—an investigator’s demand for access to personal or business information—would not have to tell the FBI if they consult a lawyer.
A New bill supposedly to extend Congressional oversight over executive department usage guidelines however, shortly after the bill is signed, Bush declares oversight rules are not binding! Link and Link
The Supreme court ruled that evidence obtained in violation of the “knock and announce” rules can still be permitted in court. Link
The previous US Congress and Senate approved the Military Commissions Act, which:
> authorized torture and strips non- US citizen detainees suspected of terrorist ties of the ancient right of habeas corpus (which includes formal charges, counsel and hearings).
>It also empowers US presidents at their discretion to declare US citizens as enemy combatants and subject to detention without charge or due process Link and Link and Link
The John Warner Defense Authorization Act was passed:
> allows a president to declare a public emergency and station US military troops anywhere in America as well as take control of state based national guard units without consent of the governor or other local authorities
> authorizes presidential deployment of US troops to round-up and detain “potential terrorists”, “illegal aliens” and “disorderly” citizenry Link and Link
National Security Presidential Directive 51 (NSPD-51) establishes a new post-disaster plan where disaster is defined as: any incident, natural or man-made, resulting in extraordinary mass casualties, damage or disruption
> This places the president in charge of all three branches of government and overrides the National Emergencies Act which gave Congress power to determine the duration of a national emergency Link and Link
The “Idea” that the USA is a country that guarantees freedom of religion, free speech and the right to be protected against unreasonable search and seizure is now little more than a myth! The power of the executive branch has been extended at the expensive of the Legislative Branches so that the constitution as written no longer applies.
The USA has become a scary place for citizens, and especially legal residents and legal visitors. Citizen apathy and irrational fear promoted by Bush and Cheney and the extreme radical right wing, the teabaggers, and the religious right.
I’m sorry for what the USA has become. The American people were duped.
The world-wide economic crisis and the admirable effort to solve the health care mess has not allowed the Obama administration to even start to restore individual rights that Americans once celebrated and appreciated.
Composing members:
0
Composing members:
0
