From: "Paul Wright" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
For those seeking a more legal analysis of the wiretap issue.
The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, established by the Foreign
Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978, never had one of its rulings
challenged until 2002, when the Bush Administration challenged certain
restrictions on its surveillance activity.
This challenge was contained in the appeal designated In re Sealed Case No.
02-001 (U.S. For. Intel. Surv. Ct. 2002). I don't have the Federal Reporter
cite for this opinion.
The only official party to this appeal was the federal government (so much
for our vaunted "adversarial system of justice"), although the ACLU and
NACDL filed amici curiae("friend of the court") briefs.
The thrust of the Bush Administration's argument was that the wide range of
powers provided by the F.I.S.A., as further enhanced by the (so-called) "U.
S. A. P.A.T.R.I.O.T. Act of 2001", were such that the minimal limitations
imposed on the government, in an order authorizing electronic surveillance,
could not be justified. The "U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance
Court of Review" agreed with the Bush Administration, and sent this case
back down to the lower level "U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance
Court," with instructions to basically allow the Bush Brigade to do
whatever the Hell it pleased.
This case is important to review, however, because it serves as the
analytical foundation for the nonsensical argument now circulating among
right-wing pundits and talk shows that "federal courts have ruled that
agents of the Executive Branch can engage in warrantless electronic
surveillance whenever they desire."
It is also critically important to note that almost all of the spying that
political groups and activists have recently complained about has been
engaged in by the FBI, the JTTFs, the DHS (Homeland Security) and the U.S.
military on DOMESTIC political organizations, NOT "agents of foreign
powers," and so all this FISA talk is a smokescreen for the Bush
Administration's massive domestic spying program.
See the slip opinion of the case ( In re Sealed Case No. 02-001) attached
to this e-mail.
Paul Wright, Editor
Prison Legal News
972 Putney Rd. PMB 251
Brattleboro, VT 05301
(802) 257-1342
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
www.prisonlegalnews.org
Seattle Office:
2400 NW 80th St. PMB 148
Seattle, WA 98117
(206) 246-1022
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