Here’s what real reform of the NSA looks like (Rush Holt's "Surveillance State Repeal Act")
Here’s what real reform of the NSA looks like
By Timothy B. Lee, Published: August 2 at 9:21 am
Rep. Rush Holt has long been one of the most outspoken critics of the surveillance state. First elected in 1998 to represent central New Jersey, the Democrat served on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, which oversees U.S. intelligence agencies, from 2003 until 2011. He is currently seeking the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate from New Jersey, running against Newark mayor Cory Booker.
Last week, Holt introduced the "Surveillance State Repeal Act". A number of members of Congress have offered proposals to rein in domestic surveillance, but Holt’s bill may be the most ambitious. It would repeal the 2001 Patriot Act, which the NSA has cited as the legal basis for its phone records surveillance program. It would also repeal the 2008 FISA Amendments Act, the legal foundation for the government’s PRISM program. And it would extend whistleblower protections to cover employees of intelligence agencies.
Holt spoke to us from the campaign trail on Thursday. The transcript has been edited for length and clarity.
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Timothy B. Lee: How would your legislation be different from other NSA reform proposals?
Rush Holt: This isn’t reform. This is repeal. I voted against both of those (the Patriot Act and the FAA) before. And actually against Patriot before multiple times. Those bills were misguided in their specifics, and now seeing what various agencies have done to stretch the language of those bills to cover things that were never intended to be covered makes clear that they’ve got to go. Even Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) (the author of the Patriot Act) has said it was never intended to be used that way.
Have you been surprised by the revelations that have come out in the last couple of months?
I sat on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and chaired the Select Intelligence Oversight Panel, which was created at the recommendation of the 9/11 panel, and should be continuing except that Speaker (John) Boehner abolished it when he took office.
So having dealt with the leaders of the intelligence committee, not much surprises me. They’re in the business of secrecy and deception. And unfortunately it carries over to their interaction with Congress. One of the things about your article that I particularly liked was that you pointed out that dogged questioning by reporters has shown that the role of these programs in preventing terrorism has been peripheral at best.
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The idea of the Fourth Amendment is not to get in the way of law enforcement and intelligence, but rather to see that they do a good job by having to prove at each step of the way that they know what they’re doing, that they’re not off running down hunches and going off on wild goose chases and witch hunts. So I’m not sure what the NSA folks and folks like Clapper have been saying behind closed doors about how effective this stuff is, but I watched it for years, and it is not effective at keeping Americans safer on balance.
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Your proposal also would extend whistleblower protections to national security cases, right?
Yes, the legislation provides whistleblower protection for people who work in the intelligence agencies. Right now, they have no whistleblower protection comparable to what exists in other agencies. Especially in the (intelligence) agencies we need that. In agencies that are dominated by secrecy and deception .... If there had been whistleblower protection, I’m quite sure that Snowden would not have done what he did.
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http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-switch/wp/2013/08/02/heres-what-real-reform-of-the-nsa-looks-like/
= new reply since forum marked as read
I am surprised at the number of Rush Holt campaign signs I see.
I am going to contact the campaign and volunteer.
Cher
August 09 2013
The following is a press release from the New Jersey chapter of the National Organization for Women:
NATIONAL NOW PAC Endorses Representative Rush Holt as the Candidate of Choice in the Special Primary Election
Upon unanimous recommendation of the NOW-NJ PAC, the National NOW PAC has endorsed U.S. Representative Rush Holt in the special primary August 13th election for the open New Jersey U.S. Senate seat.
According to NOW-NJ PAC Chair Jennifer Armiger:
“The NOW-NJ PAC and the National NOW PAC feel that Rush Holt is the best candidate to uphold former Senator Frank Lautenberg’s legacy in support of women’s rights, progressive issues, and equality for all in the Garden State and at the federal level.
“In sharp contrast to some of the other candidates in the primary race, Holt has a record of leadership on women’s and progressive issues. He has been willing to stand up and defend the rights of women, the LGBTQI community, and the hardworking voters in his district, even when it has meant challenging the political status quo.
“While the NOW-NJ PAC was able to schedule interviews with Representative Rush Holt, Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver, and Representative Frank Pallone, Mayor Cory Booker’s campaign was entirely unresponsive to our requests for interview, despite repeated attempts to contact his offices by phone, email, and other means. For this reason, the NOW-NJ PAC cannot consider a recommendation for endorsement of Booker’s candidacy.
“We note that our difficulties with the Booker campaign speak plainly to the broad concerns about his bid for office and the running of his Senate campaign--that he is strong on style and ideas, but weak and unproven on the issues. He is unresponsive to his constituency and has produced little in terms of real outcomes that improve the lives of residents and voters in the city of Newark, most especially women and the underserved.
"Feminists and progressive allies will not simply hand over a Senate seat in the face of the pressure of public celebrity. New Jersey voters deserve a candidate who will have their best interests at heart--that candidate is Rush Holt.”
A longtime member of the board of Planned Parenthood of Mercer County, Holt supports and will continue to defend abortion rights and reproductive freedom. He supports the Equal Rights Amendment, pay equity for women, marriage equality, protection of social security, labor rights and public sector workers' rights, environmental protection, and single-payer health insurance. Holt also strongly defends civil liberties and he is unwilling to bargain away workers' rights and protections, as well as United States industry and sovereignty, in the name of free trade.
REAL repeal, not just an attempt to make us "comfortable" with the trashing of the Constitution.
