A Key Similarity Between Snowden Leak and PanamaPapers: Scandal is What's Been Legalized
From the start of the reporting based on Edward Snowden's leaked document archive, government defenders insisted that no illegal behavior was revealed.
From the start of the reporting based on Edward Snowden's leaked document archive, government defenders insisted that no illegal behavior was revealed. That was always false: multiple courts have now found the domestic metadata spying program in violation of the Constitution and relevant statutes and have issued similar rulings for other mass surveillance programs; numerous articles on NSA and GCHQ documented the targeting of people and groups for blatantly political or legally impermissible purposes; and the leak revealed that President Obama's top national security official (still), James Clapper, blatantly lied when testifying before Congress about the NSA's activities: a felony.
But illegality was never the crux of the scandal triggered by those NSA revelations. Instead, what was most shocking was what had been legalized: the secret construction of the largest system of suspicionless spying in human history. What was scandalous was not that most of this spying was against the law, but rather that the law - at least as applied and interpreted by the Justice Department and secret, one-sided FISA "courts" - now permitted the U.S. Government and its partners to engage in mass surveillance of entire populations, including their own. As the ACLU's Jameel Jaffer put it after The Washington Post's publication of documents showing NSA analysts engaged in illegal spying: "The 'non-compliance' angle is important, but don't get carried away. The deeper scandal is what's legal, not what's not."
Yesterday, dozens of newspapers around the world reported on what they are calling the Panama Papers: a gargantuan leak of documents from a Panama-based law firm that specializes in creating off-shore shell companies. The documents reveal billions of dollars being funneled to off-shore tax havens by leading governmental and corporate officials in numerous countries (the U.S. was oddly missing from the initial reporting though journalists vow that will change shortly).
Some of these documents undoubtedly reveal criminality: either monies that were illegally obtained (and are being hidden for that reason) or assets being concealed in order to criminally evade tax debts. But the crux of this activity - placing assets off-shore in order to avoid incurring tax liability - has been legalized. That's because western democracies along with overt tyrannies are typically controlled by societies' wealthiest, and laws are enacted to serve their interests.
Read the full article at The Intercept.
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. In a few short weeks, US voters will have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. Our Fall Campaign is underway, and we need your help. To power our newsroom through the rest of the year, we need to raise $125,000 by midnight on October 31. So if you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
From the start of the reporting based on Edward Snowden's leaked document archive, government defenders insisted that no illegal behavior was revealed. That was always false: multiple courts have now found the domestic metadata spying program in violation of the Constitution and relevant statutes and have issued similar rulings for other mass surveillance programs; numerous articles on NSA and GCHQ documented the targeting of people and groups for blatantly political or legally impermissible purposes; and the leak revealed that President Obama's top national security official (still), James Clapper, blatantly lied when testifying before Congress about the NSA's activities: a felony.
But illegality was never the crux of the scandal triggered by those NSA revelations. Instead, what was most shocking was what had been legalized: the secret construction of the largest system of suspicionless spying in human history. What was scandalous was not that most of this spying was against the law, but rather that the law - at least as applied and interpreted by the Justice Department and secret, one-sided FISA "courts" - now permitted the U.S. Government and its partners to engage in mass surveillance of entire populations, including their own. As the ACLU's Jameel Jaffer put it after The Washington Post's publication of documents showing NSA analysts engaged in illegal spying: "The 'non-compliance' angle is important, but don't get carried away. The deeper scandal is what's legal, not what's not."
Yesterday, dozens of newspapers around the world reported on what they are calling the Panama Papers: a gargantuan leak of documents from a Panama-based law firm that specializes in creating off-shore shell companies. The documents reveal billions of dollars being funneled to off-shore tax havens by leading governmental and corporate officials in numerous countries (the U.S. was oddly missing from the initial reporting though journalists vow that will change shortly).
Some of these documents undoubtedly reveal criminality: either monies that were illegally obtained (and are being hidden for that reason) or assets being concealed in order to criminally evade tax debts. But the crux of this activity - placing assets off-shore in order to avoid incurring tax liability - has been legalized. That's because western democracies along with overt tyrannies are typically controlled by societies' wealthiest, and laws are enacted to serve their interests.
Read the full article at The Intercept.
From the start of the reporting based on Edward Snowden's leaked document archive, government defenders insisted that no illegal behavior was revealed. That was always false: multiple courts have now found the domestic metadata spying program in violation of the Constitution and relevant statutes and have issued similar rulings for other mass surveillance programs; numerous articles on NSA and GCHQ documented the targeting of people and groups for blatantly political or legally impermissible purposes; and the leak revealed that President Obama's top national security official (still), James Clapper, blatantly lied when testifying before Congress about the NSA's activities: a felony.
But illegality was never the crux of the scandal triggered by those NSA revelations. Instead, what was most shocking was what had been legalized: the secret construction of the largest system of suspicionless spying in human history. What was scandalous was not that most of this spying was against the law, but rather that the law - at least as applied and interpreted by the Justice Department and secret, one-sided FISA "courts" - now permitted the U.S. Government and its partners to engage in mass surveillance of entire populations, including their own. As the ACLU's Jameel Jaffer put it after The Washington Post's publication of documents showing NSA analysts engaged in illegal spying: "The 'non-compliance' angle is important, but don't get carried away. The deeper scandal is what's legal, not what's not."
Yesterday, dozens of newspapers around the world reported on what they are calling the Panama Papers: a gargantuan leak of documents from a Panama-based law firm that specializes in creating off-shore shell companies. The documents reveal billions of dollars being funneled to off-shore tax havens by leading governmental and corporate officials in numerous countries (the U.S. was oddly missing from the initial reporting though journalists vow that will change shortly).
Some of these documents undoubtedly reveal criminality: either monies that were illegally obtained (and are being hidden for that reason) or assets being concealed in order to criminally evade tax debts. But the crux of this activity - placing assets off-shore in order to avoid incurring tax liability - has been legalized. That's because western democracies along with overt tyrannies are typically controlled by societies' wealthiest, and laws are enacted to serve their interests.
Read the full article at The Intercept.