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TechnoratiOur Warrantless Wiretapping Lawsuit
This afternoon, President Bush signed the FISA Amendments Act of 2008, a piece of legislation that will needlessly expand the government's ability to spy on Americans and ensure that the country never learns the full extent of Bush's unlawful wiretapping. There were many good Senators who showed courage in standing up to the White House and for the Constitution, but not enough.
A few hours after Bush's signing, The Nation joined with the ACLU in a lawsuit filed in the US District Court (Southern District) of New York challenging the constitutionality of the Act. The Nation is suing on behalf of itself, our staff and two of our contributing writers--Chris Hedges and Naomi Klein. The defendants are the Attorney General of the United States, Michael Mukasey; John M. "Mike" McConnell, Director of National Intelligence; and Lt. Gen. Keith Alexander, Director of the National Security Agency and Chief of the Security Service. We filed suit along with a coalition of other plaintiffs including Amnesty International USA, Human Rights Watch, Global Fund for Women, PEN American Center, Washington Office on Latin America, Service Employees International Union and several private attorneys.
Why are we joining this lawsuit?
For 143 years, The Nation has believed that an essential element of patriotism is the unyielding defense of civil liberties. Immediately after 9/11, as a fog of national security enveloped official Washington and the mainstream media enlisted in the Administration's war, it was clear to us that the need for an independent and critical press seemed never more urgent. The speedy passage of the repressive Patriot Act, with scarcely a murmur of dissent in Congress, and the establishment of military tribunals were troubling signs that a wartime crackdown on civil liberties was under way and called for vigorous opposition. Criticizing government policy in wartime is a not a path to popularity. Our patriotism was questioned, we were called "anti-American." Yet, as it has at different times in our country's turbulent history, The Nation marched to a different drummer and stood firm in defense of our core constitutional values--believing then, as we do now, that it is possible to defend this country from terrorists while also protecting the rights and freedoms that define our nation.
Today, we are proud to join with the ACLU and other plaintiffs in this lawsuit in the belief that the government 's surveillance activities should respect, not trample, the Constitution. Our history as America's oldest weekly journal of opinion has taught us that surveillance powers can easily become a threat to a free and open society.
In the brief filed today in the US District Court, we provide reasons for participating in this defense of our republic. Here are a few:
* Because of the nature of our work, The Nation's editors, columnists and contributors routinely engage in telephone and e-mail communications with individuals outside the US. These communications are vital to providing up-to-date, accurate information about emerging news stories and informing longer-range analytical articles on international topics. Some of the information exchanged by the Nation's editors, columnists and contributors through these communications constitutes "foreign intelligence information" as defined by the challenged law. For example, the Nation's staff members and contributing journalists routinely communicate by telephone or e-mail with political dissidents in other countries, foreign journalists in conflict zones, representatives of foreign government and individuals with connections to dissident political and social groups. Some of these communications relate to the involvement or alleged involvement of the US government or its allies abroad, or of the US military and its contractors, in repression and human rights abuses. Some of these communications relate to the subjects of terrorism, counterterrorism, or the foreign affairs of the US.
* We believe the challenged law undermines the ability of The Nation's editors, writers, contributors and staff to gather information that is critical to their work. The ability to communicate confidentially with sources is essential to journalists' work. Many of the people with whom the Nation's staff and contributors communicate will not share information if they believe that their identities cannot be kept confidential. Some of them fear retribution by their own governments; others fear retribution by the US government; still others fear persecution at the hands of terrorist groups. The risk that their identities will be revealed will lead some sources who otherwise would have shared information to decline to do so.
Specifically, we cite the work of our regular contributors Chris Hedges and Naomi Klein in our filing. Hedges, in his reporting on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the so-called war on terror regularly communicates with sources in countries like Palestine, Iran, Syria and Sudan. Klein, in her essential critique of the extension of radical free-market capitalism and the resurgence of imperial militarism, routinely communicates with journalists, political activists, human rights campaigners in the Middle East, South America, and around the world. Sadly, we believe that the communications critical to their reporting could and would be monitored under the FISA Amendments Act. Certainly scores of other journalists would shoulder the same risk.
We are proud, then, to join with other patriots who understand the government's legitimate interest in protecting the nation against terrorism can be fulfilled without sacrificing the constitutional liberties that make the US worth defending.
Katrina vanden Heuvel is Editor and Publisher of The Nation. She is the co-editor of Taking Back America--And Taking Down The Radical Right (NationBooks, 2004).
Copyright © 2008 The Nation
29 Comments so far
Show AllKatrina is a corrupt 'journalist' working for a corrupt publication, both posing as progressive.
Democrats are the reason we have illegal wiretapping and we're still in Iraq. Why not speak the truth, Ms. vanden Heuvel, ONCE?
Nicely stated H2o.
If the Green Party gets 5% of the National Vote that will insure a place at the table for authentic progressives. Not rhetorical progressives like Poor little Katrina and all her inside-the-belt-way courtiers. Cynthia Mckiney delievered a true progessive speech at the Green convention the other day. Check it out.
It's time to walk our talk instead of paying lip service to our ideology. If you continue to lick the hand of patriarchal ass holes than follow Katrina's advice. Otherwise, get some nerve and say NO to the corporate system we currently have under Obama and McCain.
H20 . . .
Immediately after the Obama/FISA vote, I had an e-mail from
"Democracy.com" trying to raise money for Dems/Obama ---
BUT, they wanted strings on the money until the move to
the right was undone!
I am with you all the way, H2O.
Voting for the lesser of the two evils may have been worth trying for once or twice, but now it is nothing short of insanity. Einstein is supposed to have said that one definition if insanity is to try the sazme thing over and over, and expect a different outcome.
Dems are the Complicit Party - almost everything Bush has done would not have been possible without the support of the current Democratic Party.
Obama has not earned my vote.
I'm with H2O here.
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I agree that it would be very nice to have decent progressive officials at all levels of government, but waiting for that to happen before we support progressives at higher levels is rather like Bush's plan to wait to address auto CO2 emissions until we get hydrogen fuels. We ain't got time for that.
The reason you see Nader "only" every four years is because that's the only time the media will pay ANY attention to him. He's still around in between but the media don't give a hoot.
Oh dear! Another "safe states" strategy being advanced. Exactly what the Dems want; "Let you outraged progressives safely blow off some steam in states where your vote won't threaten us, but heaven forbid, don't you DARE vote progressive in a state where WE might actually have to BE progressive in order to win!"
All you folks out there who actually want the Dem party to become a decent home for progressives had better understand that only by denying them the vote when they fail to be so, will you ever get there. That is how the Right Wingers got the Reps.; by sticking to their guns. Blaming guys like Nader for "stealing votes" works for awhile, but even rank and file Dems who bought that nonsense before and are still mad at Ralph are getting pretty TOd at the Dems. It amazes me that they have taken as much as they have; no doubt there are some who are genetically Dem, but of those who are Dems out of principle, the Party may well be pushing them a little too far.
I am a regis. Dem but only vote that way if the candidate is progressive - on the occupation, on healthcare, etc. and I have let them know that on every solicitation they send me - "No single payer, no out of Iraq, no out of WTO from you, then no money, no support and (most importantly) No Vote from me, period." At this point, it is clear that, under these circumstances, the Dems obviously do not WANT my vote. Their paychecks from the corp. interests are apparently worth more to them than my vote so I will not give it to them. What they fear more than anything is that a lot of people may do what I am doing and have done in the past, so they must make sure that there is no candidate out there that people like myself can coalesce around as an honest alternative. It is harder to blame people who stay home for "stealing votes", but MANY more votes were lost to the Dems by those who stayed home than by those who voted for Nader. In both cases the Dems would have won more votes for themselves with a decent candidate, but a decent candidate requires decent views on healthcare, the war, trade, etc and decent views on those issues would jeopardize their corporate funds. They have made their choice, now I make mine. In betraying their "principles" (whatever they have left) they have betrayed me. My Dem. registration is not a promise of blind loyalty, my vote IS important, it is one of the few things I have left of real value and I will not give it lightly. It must be earned; Obama has not, Nader has. Sorry, the lesser of 2 evils is not good enough any more; it never was to begin with and hanging on to it for sooo long is what got us into this mess in the first place. Lest you think that I am a fool to believe that our votes are important, let me point out to you that the Dems think so to, otherwise they would not have gone through (and still are performing) their outrageous machinations to keep not only indep. progressives like Nader off the ballot, but even progress. within their own ranks, like Kucinich, "off the table" or the debate podium. A party that fears "Harry and Louise" more than Osama bin Ladin is not one I can support.
The "safe state" strategy is arguing for just another Pyrrhic victory. Folks, aren't you getting a wee bit tired of running around with a sign on your back that says "Go ahead, master, kick me again, I am not worthy of anything better". Remember the 'ole "you can fool some of the people all of the time .....". The lesser of two evils, the "spoiler" charge, the "safe state" strategy are all just different versions of the attempt to make sure that that "some of the people" stays large enough. Well I have joined the ranks of those who cannot be fooled all of the time, and I invite you to join me. The water is a bit chilly right now, I'll admit, but it's clean and potable and won't kill me. BOTH your Dems and your Reps, as currently constituted, will.
ARTIST GENERAL: Well done!
SAMSON: (4:22) Right on!
Go for it. Do not let this go unchallenged.
SCOTUS is the last chance now. Can this be still overturned? Or shall we prepare for the dark and secretive days to come?
John Stuart Mill said 150 years ago:
"Although it is not true that all conservatives are stupid people, it is true that most stupid people are conservative."
Vote for third parties in safe states, for progressive Dems and for Obama to keep Bush/McCain/Repugs out.
Repug strategy calls for repetition of lies and deceit. But liberals are too intelligent to fall for conservative strategies that only work with stupid people. Repugs here are wasting their time and salaries on this liberal website.
I think we should hold our noses and post in right wing sites like the fascists are doing on CD. Their moderator may not let you in and we're not getting paid for it, but what's good for the goose...
Realpolitik, compromise? I am all for it. But in my books compromise is something you do at the very end. What Obama supporters are doing is outright surrender (of all expectations) at the very beginning. May be vrajitorul should think a bit more about Realpilitik.
By voting for a third party you can push all candidates away from status quo. Do you have a better idea? Change Dems from within? Oh yes? Haven't we been trying to do so for the last several elections? May be you should look up definition of insanity, one of which is to try the same thing over and over, and expect a different outcome.
Vote anybody but the two parties.
Can someone explain to me how voting for Nader, or any other vastly distant third place, excuse me, third party, candidate, "fixes" the two-party system?
And can someone else, perhaps, explain where in the world Nader lies dormant in between election cycles? Because, as far as I can see, he's not out there building a viable Green Party in the off years. What we need is not a Green President (ok, we need that, too, and badly) but the way to get there is by electing Green/Progressive School boards, county comissioners, mayors, Governors, local judges, etc., etc. That's how the Regressives do it; load every local elected office with Borgs until theres no room left over for humans. Surely we can use that tactic to build a movement, maybe create alliances with, say, disgusted Republicans (I know they're out there), or plain folx who have been brainwashed, but are hungry for real solutions.
In closing, I encourage everyone who hasn't before to look up "Realpolitik", maybe on wikipedia (I refer to the first, original definition, not the "power politics" reference.) Especially you Impeach Obama-nites. No one will come down from on high to save us, not Jesus, not Obama, neither Nader. Step by step, together, we head into our dawning. But first, we have to stanch the massive bleeding.
Great comments. More and more people waking up to the fact that our two party system is broken and realizing their enemies are not on the other side of the aisle, but those that push those two cookie cutter candidates towards us during the primaries.
Yes, Impeach Obama already.
Vote anybody but the Two Parties
I would love for some democrat to explain to me how exactly Obama is different from John Mcccain.
Both kiss Israel's ass. There interests before ours.
Obama said he would talk to all the worlds leaders including those on Bush's "bad guy" list. Then to impress us he rants on about Fidel, Chavas and Amadinajad making discussion all the more remote. Just like McCain, same result.
Neither candidate supports single payer health care or any plan that does a insurancetomy.
Obama voted for FISA which arguably is totally illegal under the 4 amendment and breaks his oath that he took as a Senator. He is a Constitutional scholar or something. Is he a lawyer? Is this any better than Mccrane?
Now he is doing that goal line shuffle over time tables for withdrawal.
What tells you Obama would chose any differently than McCain for supreme court judges? And where now does he stand on Roe v Wade?
I'd better not go on I am afraid that I dropped the a at the end of Obama and now am under surveillance. What was that Haveas corpse thing again? Excuse me there is a knock at the door........
kitty tc---See my postcard to you on the Immunity piece by Matt Rothchild. I am begining to suspect you are a not a kitty but a Fred. And you are getting very annoying with your ignorant sarcastic rants. This is a discussion forum---get it? You are sounding like a petulant child.
Pity the poor Nation. After peddling Obama as our nation's savior, he stabs them in the back.
To the Democratic Shills:
Stick around. You might learn something.
During an election season, The Nation becomes a wing of the Democratic party. You can see this in this piece by the way it constantly refers to 'Bush' as if he was solely the problem. Search in vain for any mention of the Democrats being equally as much a part of the problem. Even though the Democrats are completely and fully on board with these policies.
This leads to the myth that simply replacing Bush will solve the problem. It ignores the expansion of powers and loss of civil liberties that we suffered during the Clinton era, and it ignores that a vast majority of Democrats in Congress fully supports this bill, supported the Patriot Act, supported extensions to the Patriot Act, and supports expanding the FISA powers further and further and further.
And note very carefully that very few of the Senate Democrats objected to the broad expansion of spying powers in this bill. Feingold is about the only one that comes to mind. Their only objection was to the telecom immunity provisions. And to my cynical mind, that smells more like a scheme to shake-down the telecoms for more contributions than any attempt to defend our liberties.
Just replacing Republicans with Democrats is not the answer. We tried that in Congress in the 2006 elections. And we just saw the result, again, on the FISA vote we just had. Just replacing Bush with Obama won't make any difference. Obama's only point is that he wants to be the one spying on us instead of Bush and the Repubicans.
A vote for the Democrats is a vote approving of this last FISA bill and saying 'thank you sir, can I have another?'
To Republican Shills:
Stick around. You might learn something.
Yeah, we'll show those republicans we'll oppose them and their policies and their abuses and murders by not voting for anyone who can oppose them, and elect more republicans WOO HOO! GREEN TRAIN FOREVER BABY!
You can find Obama quite heartily condemned here (by a Nation subscriber even).
And no where will you find a word of condemnation for Barack. Nader offered a metaphor for poor little Katrina recently describing her ilk as cows with rings through their nose: they can be led anywhere.
Americans need to get rid of freedom destroying Democrats like Maryland's famous do-nothing Senator Barbara "Babs" Mikulski. As Sirota suggested, focus more attention on scoundrels at the state and local level, their corrupt goose stepping under the duress of corporations has enabled this lawless Administration's unprecedented destructive power in recent years.
Anyone hear of software/hardware encryption technology?
Instead of fighting a paranoid Government in court, simply side-step them and get-on with your business.
Americans are not the only ones who don't want their Government spying on them. Let the hackers of the world fight the fight for you.
Granted, no technology is 100% secure, but it's still a far better choice than trusting our political leaders and Justice Department to protect our rights.
I also will send a percentage of my meager pension to the ACLU.
It's not much but it's a gesture that makes me feel like I did something besides complain---Not that complaining is not important. USE IT OR LOSE IT (free speech).
My government is nothing more than a protection racket. The taxes I pay are nothing but extortion payments. Nobody should doubt the truth of this after yesterday.
Re: The Demonic Mojo of Hou$e Bushelzebub v. Rule of Law
http://flickr.com/photos/tags/artistgeneral/
THE SECOND SUCCUMBING
Turning and Spinning in the Widening Mire
The Congress cannot hear the Precedent;
Things fall apart; the Party cannot hold;
Sheer Conarchy is loosed upon Democracy,
The freedom-gouging tide is loosed, and everywhere
The Standing of America is downed;
The best convictions are too polite, while the worst
Are full of obtuse intensity;
Surely some Reason is at hand.
Yet there instead, the Patriot "Act"!
The "Patriot" Act!
Hardly are those words out
When an Orwelled image out of Posse Comitatus
Troubles my sight:
Somewhere in the martial curfews of this seminal Treachery
A shape with Oz-lion body and the head of a borne-again fool:
An 'Aye' blank and clueless as the GOP itself
Is moving its leaky Trojan Agenda, but who knew?
While overhearing guffaws & careless cheering
from the belly of the beast, that all about it now should
gather threats of patriotic fillibuster, lighting & passing torchfire.
…Wounded cowardice drops again; but indignant courage
finds unexpected stride, in the edifying irony
that a Sitting President was on his Game after all,
as if afloat, fishing! entirely untorn,
glued from National Nightmare to "My Pet Goat."
And what Hellbent Vision Thing,
its Truthless Power come round at last,
$louches towards Liberty to be Borne?
- Artist General Michael Masley
http://flickr.com/search/?q=ARTIST+GENERAL+warning&m+text
http://9832039958636920832.slide.com/
And may we hope this lawsuit is seen favorably by Justice Kennedy and the four remaining liberals, BEFORE John McCain replaces one or more of them. That hope, after all, is all you've got in this, or any, federal lawsuit.
And, yet, someone tries to convince you to impeach Obama.
I send bits of my pensioner's pence to the ACLU (and the Greens) whenever I can. Maybe it will help our grandchildren.
And KVH's next editorial will be "Why We STILL Support Obama," ignoring the fact that by certifying the FISA outrage, he and the other senators and reps who signed on violated their oaths to support and protect the Constitution.
IMPEACH OBAMA!!!!!
Well put. My father subscribed to The Nation. I will be tithing my Social Security check to the ACLU! Hopefully, the government lawyers will be so disheartened by the prospect of trying to defend Fascism that they will lose by inertia. OTOH they are so politicized... Yoo Yoo.
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