SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Revealed: The Little-Known Executive Order Behind Our 'Collect It All' Spy State
ACLU Freedom of Information request exposes how Reagan-era order has been used by the Obama administration as the "primary source" of NSA surveillance authority
Sep 29, 2014
The powers granted to the National Security Agency to spy on millions of Americans and people abroad were vested by a little-known executive order that--until now--has received scant scrutiny or oversight, newly uncovered government documents revealed on Monday.
Executive Order 12333, passed in 1981 by President Ronald Reagan, is the "main game in town for NSA surveillance," according to Alex Abdo, staff attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union, which obtained internal documents on the order through a Freedom of Information request.
One of the documents, an internal surveillance manual published by the NSA, describes EO 12333 as the "primary source" of their intelligence-gathering authority. And a "Legal Fact Sheet," distributed by the NSA two weeks after Edward Snowden disclosed their widespread surveillance, says that the agency conducts the majority of their intelligence gathering through signal interruption (or SIGNIT) "pursuant to the authority by EO 1233."
Unlike Section 215 of the Patriot Act or the FISA Amendments Act--which thus far have been the focus of public debate--the executive branch is alone in implementing EO 12333, meaning that there is essentially no oversight from Congress nor the court system.
"We've already seen that the NSA has taken a 'collect it all' mentality even with the authorities that are overseen by Congress and the courts," Abdo continues. "If that history is any lesson, we should expect--and, indeed, we have seen glimpses of--even more out-of-control spying under EO 12333."
According to Abdo's analysis of the documents, which were published by the NSA as well as the Defense Intelligence Agency among others, EO 12333 allows the government to monitor any international communication that contains any alleged "foreign intelligence information."
"That phrase is defined so nebulously that it could be read to encompass virtually every communication with one end outside the United States," Abdo writes. He adds that the documents "make it clearer than ever that the government's vast surveillance apparatus is collecting information--including from Americans--about much more than just terrorist threats."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Lauren McCauley
Lauren McCauley is a former senior editor for Common Dreams covering national and international politics and progressive news. She is now the Editor of Maine Morning Star. Lauren also helped produce a number of documentary films, including the award-winning Soundtrack for a Revolution and The Hollywood Complex, as well as one currently in production about civil rights icon James Meredith. Her writing has been featured on Newsweek, BillMoyers.com, TruthDig, Truthout, In These Times, and Extra! the newsletter of Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting. She currently lives in Kennebunk, Maine with her husband, two children, a dog, and several chickens.
The powers granted to the National Security Agency to spy on millions of Americans and people abroad were vested by a little-known executive order that--until now--has received scant scrutiny or oversight, newly uncovered government documents revealed on Monday.
Executive Order 12333, passed in 1981 by President Ronald Reagan, is the "main game in town for NSA surveillance," according to Alex Abdo, staff attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union, which obtained internal documents on the order through a Freedom of Information request.
One of the documents, an internal surveillance manual published by the NSA, describes EO 12333 as the "primary source" of their intelligence-gathering authority. And a "Legal Fact Sheet," distributed by the NSA two weeks after Edward Snowden disclosed their widespread surveillance, says that the agency conducts the majority of their intelligence gathering through signal interruption (or SIGNIT) "pursuant to the authority by EO 1233."
Unlike Section 215 of the Patriot Act or the FISA Amendments Act--which thus far have been the focus of public debate--the executive branch is alone in implementing EO 12333, meaning that there is essentially no oversight from Congress nor the court system.
"We've already seen that the NSA has taken a 'collect it all' mentality even with the authorities that are overseen by Congress and the courts," Abdo continues. "If that history is any lesson, we should expect--and, indeed, we have seen glimpses of--even more out-of-control spying under EO 12333."
According to Abdo's analysis of the documents, which were published by the NSA as well as the Defense Intelligence Agency among others, EO 12333 allows the government to monitor any international communication that contains any alleged "foreign intelligence information."
"That phrase is defined so nebulously that it could be read to encompass virtually every communication with one end outside the United States," Abdo writes. He adds that the documents "make it clearer than ever that the government's vast surveillance apparatus is collecting information--including from Americans--about much more than just terrorist threats."
Lauren McCauley
Lauren McCauley is a former senior editor for Common Dreams covering national and international politics and progressive news. She is now the Editor of Maine Morning Star. Lauren also helped produce a number of documentary films, including the award-winning Soundtrack for a Revolution and The Hollywood Complex, as well as one currently in production about civil rights icon James Meredith. Her writing has been featured on Newsweek, BillMoyers.com, TruthDig, Truthout, In These Times, and Extra! the newsletter of Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting. She currently lives in Kennebunk, Maine with her husband, two children, a dog, and several chickens.
The powers granted to the National Security Agency to spy on millions of Americans and people abroad were vested by a little-known executive order that--until now--has received scant scrutiny or oversight, newly uncovered government documents revealed on Monday.
Executive Order 12333, passed in 1981 by President Ronald Reagan, is the "main game in town for NSA surveillance," according to Alex Abdo, staff attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union, which obtained internal documents on the order through a Freedom of Information request.
One of the documents, an internal surveillance manual published by the NSA, describes EO 12333 as the "primary source" of their intelligence-gathering authority. And a "Legal Fact Sheet," distributed by the NSA two weeks after Edward Snowden disclosed their widespread surveillance, says that the agency conducts the majority of their intelligence gathering through signal interruption (or SIGNIT) "pursuant to the authority by EO 1233."
Unlike Section 215 of the Patriot Act or the FISA Amendments Act--which thus far have been the focus of public debate--the executive branch is alone in implementing EO 12333, meaning that there is essentially no oversight from Congress nor the court system.
"We've already seen that the NSA has taken a 'collect it all' mentality even with the authorities that are overseen by Congress and the courts," Abdo continues. "If that history is any lesson, we should expect--and, indeed, we have seen glimpses of--even more out-of-control spying under EO 12333."
According to Abdo's analysis of the documents, which were published by the NSA as well as the Defense Intelligence Agency among others, EO 12333 allows the government to monitor any international communication that contains any alleged "foreign intelligence information."
"That phrase is defined so nebulously that it could be read to encompass virtually every communication with one end outside the United States," Abdo writes. He adds that the documents "make it clearer than ever that the government's vast surveillance apparatus is collecting information--including from Americans--about much more than just terrorist threats."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.