Privacy

February 12, 2008 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) today released the following statement on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). Earlier today, Senator Obama voted in favor of the Dodd-Feingold amendment to repeal retroactive immunity for telecommunications companies (S. Amdt. 3907). He also supported other amendments to improve the bill, including the Feingold-Webb-Tester amendment to protect Americans from unwarranted surveillance (S. Amdt. 3979), and the Feingold amendment to protect Americans from the bulk collection of communications (S. Amdt. 3912).    » read more »

February 12, 2008 -- The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act – FISA – is intended to protect both our national security and the privacy and civil liberties of Americans.    » read more »

(As Prepared for Delivery)

February 12, 2008 -- The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act is one of our landmark statutes. For three decades, it has carefully regulated government surveillance in a way that protects both our national security and our civil liberties and prevents the government from abusing its powers. It is because FISA enhances both security and liberty that it has won broad support over the years from presidents, Congress, and the public alike.    » read more »

February 12, 2008 -- "Mr. President, last year Congress passed a temporary bill with a six month time limit that would give us the opportunity to carry out a thorough, thoughtful examination of how to utilize complicated new technologies in the surveillance of suspected terrorists without invading the privacy of innocent Americans. In the months since we passed that temporary act, we have worked in a bipartisan manner to consider the best course forward for permanent changes to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.    » read more »

February 12, 2008 -- "I believe we need to modernize our surveillance laws and give our nation’s intelligence professionals the tools they need to fight terrorism and to make our country more secure. At the same time, smart, balanced reform must also protect the rights and civil liberties of Americans. In my opinion, the FISA Amendments Act of 2007 falls short of these goals, and for that reason, I oppose the bill.    » read more »

12 February 2008 -- The U.S. Senate Tuesday voted to renew a controversial surveillance law set to expire at the end of the week. Lawmakers left intact a provision to shield telephone companies from lawsuits for their role in the Bush administration's wiretap program, despite opposition from many Democrats.

The Senate voted to extend a law which authorizes U.S. intelligence agencies to monitor - without warrants - telephone calls and emails between Americans and suspected terrorists overseas.    » read more »

(As Entered into the Record)

February 6, 2008 -- Mr. President, the amendment that I’ve offered with Senators Kerry and Menendez addresses a serious problem with the FISA bill that we are now considering, and I am very pleased that it has been incorporated into the bill by unanimous consent.    » read more »

January 28, 2008 -- “The Senate today rejected the tactics of obstructionism and delay employed by the Republican minority and the White House. In refusing to allow the entire Senate the opportunity to openly and fairly debate the important issue of amending our surveillance laws, Republicans have brought to a screeching halt the Senate’s extensive efforts over the last several months to protect this country and the privacy and civil liberties of all Americans.    » read more »

January 28, 2008 -- Washington, DC – “Today, I will vote against Republican efforts to shortchange the debate on the FISA Amendments Act, important legislation that would modernize our surveillance laws and give our nation's intelligence professionals the tools they need to fight terrorism and make our country more secure.    » read more »

29 January 2008 -- Legislation to expand and renew a wiretapping law that expires Friday stalled on the floor of the U.S. Senate Monday amid partisan wrangling. Lawmakers are expected to seek a temporary extension of the measure later this week.

Senate Republicans who support of the legislation failed to muster the 60 votes needed to end debate and move the bill to a final vote. The vote was 48 to 45.    » read more »

January 24, 2008 -- (Washington, DC) - The White House has agreed to provide the House Judiciary and Intelligence Committees access to classified documents concerning the NSA warrantless wiretapping program. As applied to the Judiciary committee, ten Democratic members, nine Republican members, and staff with appropriate security clearance would be "read into" the program next week and have access to documents including legal memoranda about the program and communications with telephone companies. House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI) released the following statment:    » read more »

Legislation would require an Inspector General of the Administration’s warrantless wiretapping program

January 24, 2008 -- (As Prepared for Delivery)    » read more »

January 23, 2008 -- Washington, DC – In anticipation of the debate on the FISA bill, Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) took to the Senate Floor today to discuss two amendments that she plans on offering.

* The first amendment would ensure that the federal government must follow the requirements of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) when conducting electronic surveillance of American citizens for foreign intelligence purposes.    » read more »

Washington, DC -- January 24, 2008 - U.S. Senators Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) today introduced an amendment to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act currently pending on the floor. The amendment would substitute the United States in place of any electronic communication service provider who provided communications in connection with an intelligence activity that was (1) authorized by the President between September 11, 2001, and January 17, 2007, and (2) designed to detect or prevent a terrorist attack against the United States.    » read more »

January 11, 2008 -- “The Bush administration’s REAL ID program will not only lead to long lines at every DMV across the country, it will impose a massive unfunded mandate on state governments while offering absolutely no federal privacy protections to our citizens.    » read more »