:: PATRIOTWATCH ::

:: Thursday, July 01, 2004 ::

Spy-der-Man John Ashcroft

Armed with the far-reaching USA Patriot Act, John "Spy-der-man" Ashcroft abuses his power and abuses his authority as our nation's top cop. The flash ends with the ultimate call to action for Ashcroft: resign.

Link to Flash Animation Via Talkleft

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Take Action! Cut off Funds for Library and Bookstore Searches Under USA PATRIOT Act Section-The Bill of Rights Defense Committee

Urgent Phone and Fax Alert: Cut off funds for library and bookstore searches under USA PATRIOT Act Section 215

Support the Sanders-Paul-Conyers-Nadler-Otter Amendment to the Commerce, Justice, State and Judiciary Appropriations Bill of 2005 with a phone call to your House member. Consider following up with a fax. This amendment could be voted on the House floor as early as Wednesday, July 7, 2004.

Points to include in your call or fax:

Like the Freedom to Read Protection Act (H.R. 1157) sponsored by Congressman Bernie Sanders (I-VT), this amendment would restore legal standards and warrant procedures for investigations of libraries and bookstores which were in place before passage of the USA PATRIOT Act. H.R. 1157 has the bipartisan support of 145 cosponsors.

Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act severely expands the scope of materials the FBI can access with a warrant from the government's secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance ACT or "FISA" court. This section gives the FBI the power to search for any "tangible things (including books, records, papers, documents, and other items)" in any location without having to show "probable cause."

Many people across the country, including librarians and booksellers, are concerned about the "chilling effect" of this legislation, which encourages users to self-censor their reading choices. Fifty state library associations, four state legislatures, and 331 cities and towns representing more than 52 million people have passed resolutions expressing their concerns with Section 215 and other specific provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act.

Passage of this amendment would still allow the FBI to use all constitutionally sanctioned means to obtain warrants and criminal subpoenas to access library and bookstore records pertinent to investigations related to terrorism or criminal acts.

The Sanders-Paul-Conyers-Nadler-Otter amendment is part of a national grassroots campaign to protect our cherished civil liberties, which are threatened by the USA PATRIOT Act. The Campaign for Reader Privacy--sponsored by the American Booksellers Association, the American Library Association, and PEN American Center--has built momentum in support of ending the use Section 215 in libraries and bookstores by gathering more than 125,000 signatures in bookstores, libraries, and online at www.readerprivacy.org. People like you in cities and towns across the country must let your elected officials in Washington know that we can have security without sacrificing our constitutional guaranteed rights and liberties.

To find contact information for your House member, go to www.house.gov. Please make a call today or no later than Tuesday, July 6. Feel free to pass this alert on to others who may be interested.

For more information visit the Bill of Rights Defense Committee

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Support of First Freedoms Back to Pre-9/11 Levels, New Survey Shows

"Americans’ support for their First Amendment freedoms — deeply shaken by the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 — continues to rebound and is back at pre-9/11 levels, according to the annual State of the First Amendment survey, conducted by the First Amendment Center in collaboration with American Journalism Review magazine."

Link to Press Release

Link to New Report-2004 State of the First Amendment



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US, Britain and Australia to Build Global Intelligence Operation to Counter Al-Qaeda

"Counter-terrorism chiefs in the US, Britain and Australia are aiming to build a global intelligence-sharing structure that will allow security services to assess threats and issue warnings continuously across all time zones."

Link to Article

In F.B.I., Innocent Detainee Found Unlikely Ally

"It took no more than a week for James P. Wynne, a veteran F.B.I. investigator, to confirm the harmless truth that only now, more than two years later, he is ready to talk about. The small foreign man he helped arrest for videotaping outside an office building in Queens on Oct. 25, 2001, was no terrorist."

Link to Article

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The Liberal Center for American Progress Reports on the State of Port Security

"A General Accounting Office (GAO) report released this week contradicts claims by Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge that U.S. ports are in "full compliance" with anti-terrorism standards scheduled to go into effect today. The report alleges that about 7 percent of all U.S. ports and more than half of U.S. ships have not even been reviewed, and that the process for reviewing some other ports is flawed. The big problem, however, is money: the LA Times reports, "experts said yesterday that inadequate government funding has slowed efforts" to secure the nation's ports. As in many areas of homeland security, President Bush has underfunded his own security mandates for U.S. ports, putting Americans at risk. American Progress's P.J. Crowley writes that as a result of underfunding, "a lot of the security improvements the Bush administration is touting exist on paper and not yet on the pier."

Link to Article



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Domestic Spying vs. Secret Police

Are we on a slippery slope to a domestic spy agency in the U.S.(MI5)?

"To some people, from conservative politicians to civil libertarians and former law enforcement officials, licensing any federal body to spy on Americans risks undermining the Constitution. In July, the House passed an amendment to the Patriot Act sponsored by a Republican, Rep. C.L. “Butch” Otter of Idaho, that would scale back law enforcement’s ability to go on “fishing expeditions” in libraries, on the Internet or using phone or bank records without reporting these activities to the subject of the investigation. The amendment would have to be taken up by the Senate as well to go into effect.

“How much are we willing to change in response to 9/11 attack, to tolerate being watched, our information being joined into databases that create a whole new picture of person that didn’t exist before, how much should we accept authorities pushing, probing and demanding?” asks Jim Gilmore, former Virginia governor and leader of a panel investigating these issues on behalf of the Bush administration. “If the enemy’s going to force us to change what we are as Americans, we should do it with our eyes opened. As a conservative Republican, I’m deeply concerned about this.”

Link to Article



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New Play Guantanamo' a sellout in London, on its way to New York

"In Britain and much of the rest of Europe, "Guantanamo" has become a kind of freighted shorthand for the popular belief that the Bush administration has used the war on terror to go beyond the rule of law.

"Guantanamo" also is the title of a new play that casts a cold light on the plight of about 600 "enemy combatants," who, in the words of Law Lord Johan Steyn, one of Britain's most prominent jurists, are being held "in a legal black hole at the United States naval base at Guantanamo Bay."

Vanessa Redgrave, Patrick Stewart and several other British actors known for their anti-establishment sympathies have announced plans to stage the play in the United States. The opening in New York will be timed to coincide with the Republican National Convention."

Link to Article

Houston Airport Rangers

PATRIOTWATCHERS what do you think? Does this sound like a good idea? Mob justice? Danger of vigilantism and racial profiling or good civic participation?

"Thank you for your interest in the George Bush Intercontinental (IAH) Airport Rangers program. The Airport Rangers program was created with security and community participation in mind. Airport Rangers are mounted security patrol made up of volunteers, including off-duty law enforcement officers that ride their horses along the perimeter of the 11,000 acre Bush Intercontinental Airport. In return for keeping an eye out for suspicious activity in the area, equestrians have a pristine location, including wooded trails to ride and the airport has extra eyes and ears in areas that most security patrols can not easily access."

Link to Web Site

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Sensors & Sensibility

"It's alarming! It's no big deal! How your personal information is being collected and protected, used and misused."

Link to Report

Voting Official Seeks Process for Canceling Election Day over Terrorism

The government needs to establish guidelines for canceling or rescheduling elections if terrorists strike the United States again, says the chairman of a new federal voting commission.

Such guidelines do not currently exist, said DeForest B. Soaries, head of the voting panel.

Link to Article

TSA Exempts Systems from Privacy Act

"Transportation Security Administration officials are changing the Code of Federal Regulations so that eight information systems could be exempt from one or more provisions of the Privacy Act'

Link to Article

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The Dirty Bomb Distraction

The biggest danger from radiological weapons is the misplaced panic that they would cause

"shortly afterwards, the Justice Department released some details about Jose Padilla, the one-time street thug who had received extensive al Qaeda training and had hoped to explode a dirty bomb in the United States. But according to the Justice Department announcement, al Qaeda had doubted that Padilla’s proposal to build a dirty bomb was practical. They directed him instead to blow up two apartment buildings using natural gas. They apparently felt that such an action would have a greater chance of spreading death and destruction than would a radiological weapon.

Al Qaeda was right. Perhaps that should scare you. Al Qaeda appears to understand the limitations of these devices better than do many government leaders, newspapers, and even many scientists."

Link to Article

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U.S. Finds Truckers, Pilots Tied to Terror

"Government background checks of foreign airline crew members and truckers licensed to haul hazardous materials in the United States turned up 38 with possible terrorist connections, Homeland Security Department officials said Tuesday. Asa Hutchinson, undersecretary for border and transportation security, said the agency reviewed the backgrounds of all 450,000 foreign crew members that flew into the country since March and identified nine pilots with potential ties to terrorists."

Link to Article



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U.S. Expels Iranians Seen Filming Bridges, Landmarks

"The United States has expelled two Iranian security guards employed by Tehran's United Nations offices after the mission was repeatedly warned against allowing its guards to videotape bridges, the Statue of Liberty and New York's subway, U.S. officials said on Tuesday."

Link to Article

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The Patriot Act of the 18th Century

"Nations sometimes lose their bearings when confronted by an enemy. In a state of crisis or even panic, they implement measures that are later viewed as regrettable. From 1798 to 1800, the French were considered terrorists, pirating ships and making things uncomfortable for the fledgling American republic. The Federalist Party led a backlash against the French, and Thomas Jefferson and his Republican Party were seen as Francophiles. The XYZ Affair—a scandal centering on the fact that some French officials demanded bribes from American diplomats—brought relations between France and the U.S. to the breaking point. The Federalist Administration of President John Adams considered such solicitations to be grave insults. There were cultural differences as well. In the view of Abigail Adams, Frenchwomen were risqué at best.

The reaction to the threat from France came in the form of the Alien and Sedition Acts, which were championed by the Federalists, passed by Congress and signed by Adams in 1798. The Alien Act required immigrants to reside in the U.S. for 14 years instead of 5 to qualify for citizenship. The act also gave the President the legal right to expel those the government considered "dangerous." The Sedition Act punished "false, scandalous and malicious" writings against the government with fines and imprisonment. Most of those arrested under the Sedition Act were Republican editors, and instead of sending boatloads of aliens back to France, it resulted in no one's deportation. In a foreshadowing of the climate that inspired today's USA Patriot Act, at the turn of the century 200 years ago, it was common practice to question the patriotism of citizens, immigrants and the political opposition."

Link to Article

The New York Law Journal Reports that U.S. May Bring Terror Charges Against Padilla

"The U.S. attorney's office in Miami is preparing to indict alleged "dirty bomber" suspect and former Broward County resident Jose Padilla as early as next month on terror-related charges, according to a Justice Department source. The filing of an indictment, which would come on orders from the White House, would effectively end Mr. Padilla's two-year status as a federal detainee without charge.

On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to rule on Mr. Padilla's lawsuit challenging his detention. The Court said he should have named as a defendant the military officer in charge of the U.S. Navy brig where he is being held, not Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld."

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Foreign Lobbyist Database Could Vanish
Justice Department claims merely copying its foreign agents database could destroy it

From the Democracy Dies Behind Closed Doors Department

"Justice Department officials say a huge database that serves as the public's lone window on lobbying activities by foreign governments has been allowed to decay to a point they cannot even make a copy of its contents. Responding to a recent Freedom of Information request from the Center for Public Integrity, the Justice Department's Foreign Agent Registration Unit said it was unable to copy its records electronically because their computer system was "so fragile." In a letter, the head of the unit's Freedom of Information office said that simply attempting to make an electronic copy of the database "could result in a major loss of data, which would be devastating."

Read the entire article for important Saudi connection.





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Hamdi and Padilla Appear to be a Huge Loss for the Government

"This is based upon a very cursory first read, but it appears that Hamdi and Padilla in conjunction are a huge loss for the Government. The Government, recall, acknowledged that detention of these persons was necessary and proper principally for purposes of interrogating them for intelligence reasons. (Hence the denial of counsel, etc.; see the Jacoby Declaration in Padilla.)"

See the Goldstein & Howe SCOTUS Blog

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A Mixed Verdict on the Terror War

Rulings offer partial wins for White House, civil rights activists

"The Supreme Court delivered a mixed verdict Monday on the Bush administration's anti-terrorism policies, ruling that the U.S. government has the power to hold American citizens and foreign nationals without charges or trial, but that detainees can challenge their treatment in U.S. courts."

Link to Article

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Enemy Combatants Win Right to U.S. Courts

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Monday that prisoners seized as potential terrorists and held for more than two years at a U.S. military prison camp in Cuba may challenge their captivity in American courts, a defeat for President Bush in one of the first major high court cases arising from the Sept. 11 attacks.


Link to Article

Link to Opinion

Link to Padilla Opinion

Link to Hamdi Opinion



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“In this difficult day, in this difficult time for the United States, it is perhaps well to ask what kind of a nation we are and what direction we want to move in...”

Robert F. Kennedy

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In an Age of Terror, Safety Is Relative

"With the introduction of sophisticated airport inspections, bomb-screening of checked bags, security stops at building entrances, better passport controls, "smart borders" with improved computers and identity scanners, and hundreds of radiation and bioweapon detectors installed in urban areas, security has significantly improved in just three years. This summer, residents of New York and Boston are seeing lots of extra patrols, bomb-sniffing dogs and police drills, in preparation for the political conventions.

But some of what's being done is primarily psychological: to make people feel more safe, regardless of whether they really are. And though the government must try any reasonable idea to counter terrorism, in the next round of security improvements to come there will be serious limits to practicality and affordability."

Link to Article

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Library Group to Poll on Patriot Act Usage

"The American Library Association said Friday it will survey thousands of libraries to determine how often federal agents have used the USA Patriot Act to try to secretly obtain patrons’ records.

The association wants the information in its fight to bring about changes to the law, said Emily Sheketoff, executive director of the group’s Washington office.

The act “jeopardizes library patrons’ privacy in a way that has never been done before,” she said at the start of group’s annual conference in Orlando."

Link to Article



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PATRIOTWATCH Anticipates New Push for PATRIOT II Power-Administrative Subpoena Authority

PATRIOTWATCH has been surprised Republicans have not engaged in a full court press for administrative subpoena authority sooner. This is the one PATRIOT II power the administration has sought more than any other. Last summer Attorney General Ashcroft requested the administrative subpoena power. In a speech on September 10, 2003 President Bush requested three additional powers: administrative subpoena power, expansion of the death penalty for terrorist offenses, and pre-trial detention. The following week three bills were introduced that satisfied the President’s request. The administrative subpoena power is also included in draft legislation the VICTORY Act and was part of the Domestic Security Enhancement Act (PATRIOT II).

Notice that Senator Leahy (D-VT) raised the Republican quest for administrative subpoena power in his statement for last week's hearing on “Tools To Fight Terrorism: Subpoena Authority And Pretrial Detention Of Terrorists":

"Based on the title of today’s hearing, government witnesses today will presumably talk about the Administration’s “need” for subpoena authority in criminal terrorism cases for the sole reason that there are other administrative subpoenas in the U.S. Code and despite the fact that grand jury subpoenas are available in every terrorism case opened. In fact, the FBI already has far-reaching compulsory powers to obtain documents and witness testimony when it is investigating terrorism, under both its criminal and intelligence authority by way of search warrants, grand jury subpoenas, secret court orders and National Security Letters (or NSLs). More traditional investigative techniques are also available, including mail covers, trash runs, ex parte orders, and writs, just to name a few.

I hope the Administration’s witnesses will explain why grand jury subpoenas, which are available in terrorism cases, are not adequate government power and individual agents need to wield administrative authority without supervision."

We can anticipate a Senate version of the House bill (H.R. 3037) introduced last year that seeks administrative subpoena authority. Fortunately, after almost one year the House bill has only one member. We will keep you posted.



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DHS Officials Duck Questions on Passenger Screening System-CAPPS II

"For the third straight day on Capitol Hill, an official from the Homeland Security Department fended off questions about the development of a system to screen airline passengers that has raised privacy concerns. Testifying before a Senate Appropriations subcommittee, Tom Blank, an assistant administrator at the Transportation Security Administration, said the program is under review for possible changes to reflect privacy and civil-liberties concerns, and he signaled that the program would not be ready until next year.

Link to Article

Errors on Terror-By PAUL KRUGMAN

Tonight, I am instructing the leaders of the F.B.I., the C.I.A., the Homeland Security and the Department of Defense to develop a Terrorist Threat Integration Center, to merge and analyze all threat information in a single location. Our government must have the very best information possible." Thus spoke President Bush in the 2003 State of the Union address. A White House fact sheet called the center "the next phase in the dramatic enhancement of the government's counterterrorism effort."

Among other things, the center took over the job of preparing the government's annual report on "Patterns of Global Terrorism." The latest report, released in April, claimed to document a sharp fall in terrorism. "You will find in these pages clear evidence that we are prevailing in the fight," Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage declared. But this week the government admitted making major errors. In fact, in 2003 the number of significant terrorist attacks reached a 20-year peak.

Link to Op-Ed




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Help Ensure that the Department of Homeland Security Protects Civil Liberties-Support S.2536

"On June 17, Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) joined in introducing the Homeland Security Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Protection Act of 2004 (S.2536), which makes the protection of civil rights and civil liberties an institutional priority of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). DHS was created with a mandate to safeguard the United States in response to the horrific September 11th terror attacks. However, in securing our nation, the law establishing DHS failed to provide adequate protections for civil rights and civil liberties. Human Rights First has been especially concerned that the rights of refugees and asylum seekers may be compromised by the focus on combating terrorism.

Passage of S. 2536 would help ensure that the rights of those detained are protected. The Collins-Wyden legislation addresses concerns about threats to civil liberties by ensuring that the Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Officer and the Privacy Officer at DHS continue to serve in senior-level roles, while it also more clearly defines their duties within the Department."

Take Action



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Temporary Victory Against PATRIOT II Expansion of Secret Search Power (FISA)

Late yesterday we received word that the PATRIOT II-type expansion of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (H.R. 3179) was temporarily halted. Previously PATRIOTWATCH had real concern that the bill’s provisions may be included as part of the Intelligence Authorization Bill at what was scheduled to be a mark-up closed to the public. As a recent coalition sign-on letter indicates, "the Intelligence Committee has held no hearings (public or closed) on the bill, and we do not believe these substantial expansions of the government’s surveillance powers should be considered in a closed Intelligence Committee mark-up". This was the means by which Republicans previously, and stealthily we might add, expanded the National Security Letter authority. H.R. 3179 was not included on the Intelligence Authorization Bill, however, this may be a short-lived victory as the provision may be attached to other legislation. We will keep you informed-PATRIOTWATCH.


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Bruce Schneier: Unchecked Police and Military Power is a Security Threat

"The United States is admired throughout the world because of our freedoms and our liberties. The very rights that are being discussed within the halls of the Supreme Court are the rights that keep us all safe and secure. The more our fight against terrorism is conducted within the confines of law, the more it gives consideration to the principles of fair and open trial, due process and "innocent until proven guilty," the safer we all are.

Unchecked police and military power is a security threat -- just as important a threat as unchecked terrorism. There is no reason to sacrifice the former to obtain the latter, and there are very good reasons not to.

Bruce Schneier, Minneapolis, is chief technology officer of Counterpane Internet Security Inc. and the author of "Beyond Fear: Thinking Sensibly About Security in an Uncertain World."

Link to Article

Rocket Hobbyists Dropping Hobby

"Rocketeers up and down the skill-level range are feeling the pinch of post-9/11 regulations promulgated by the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Today, thousands of people fly model rockets that range in size from about 12 inches to more than 30 feet tall. But since the ATF imposed new rules, some hobbyists have abandoned their pastime, and the next generation of engineers and scientists, some fear, is being driven away.

"If we're in an environment where the government says you've got to get fingerprinted and background checked, and spend three to four months to do it, (adults are) not going to participate in my hobby," said Mark Bundick, president of the National Association of Rocketry. "We need more kids. It helps them learn technology. It's the technological base here in the country that we need to protect, and this hobby is a good introduction for kids that are interested in technology. If I lose those adults, then I will not be able to train those kids."

Link to Article

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More False Information From TSA

A top homeland security official told Congress that five major domestic airlines turned over sensitive passenger data to the agency or its contractors in 2002 and 2003, contradicting numerous statements by airline and government officials and confirming some of the worst fears of privacy advocates.

Link to Article

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Senators Introduce Bill to Protect Civil Rights and Civil Liberties at the Department of Homeland Security

"Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) have joined in a bipartisan effort to introduce legislation to further protect the civil rights and civil liberties of Americans. Their legislation aims to ensure that officials within the Department of Homeland Security have the ability to balance public safety with the civil right and liberties that are so important to Americans."

Link via TalkLeft

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