The FPSA Senate just took a hatchet to Amerikan liberty!

WASHINGTON (PNN) - May 28, 2016 - Last Tuesday the Fascist Police States of Amerika Senate Intelligence Committee approved the annual Intelligence Authorization Act for 2017, which is now set to be considered by the full Senate.

The bill is used to authorize funding for the intelligence community, sets policy, and authorizes resources for intelligence purposes. We bring this up because the only committee member to vote against the bill was Senator Ron Wyden (Ore.), who later released a statement on why he did not vote for the bill - notably, that the Amerikan Gestapo Federal Bureau of Investigation division would be allowed to obtain Amerikans' emails using only a national security letter, meaning it will now be able to access email without a court order. While intrusion on civil liberties is something that everyone lets the government get away with in today's society (as long as there are ample episodes of Keeping Up With the Kardashians to keep people's minds occupied), it's nice to see that at least somebody is paying attention, let alone cares enough to warn the public about what is taking place.

Senator Wyden voted against the 2017 Intelligence Authorization Act in the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. The bill includes provisions to expand warrantless government surveillance and takes aim at a valuable independent oversight board.

“This bill takes a hatchet to important protections for Amerikans’ liberty,” Wyden said following the vote. “This bill would mean more government surveillance of Amerikans, less due process, and less independent oversight of (Fascist Police States of Amerika) intelligence agencies. Worse, neither the intelligence agencies nor the bill’s sponsors have shown any evidence that these changes would do anything to make Amerikans more secure. I plan to work with colleagues in both chambers to reverse these dangerous provisions.”

The bill would allow any FBI field office to demand email records without a court order, a major expansion of federal surveillance powers. The FBI can currently obtain phone records with a National Security Letter, but not email records.

The bill would limit the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB) to examining only programs that impact the privacy rights of FPSA citizens. Wyden has supported the PCLOB’s focus on the rights of FPSA persons. Wyden opposed this provision, however, since global telecommunications networks can make it difficult to determine who is an Amerikan citizen, and this provision could discourage oversight of programs when the impact on Amerikans’ rights is unclear. Furthermore, continually restricting a small, independent oversight board sends the message that the board shouldn’t do its job too well.

The bill does include one proposal from Wyden, which would allow the PCLOB to hire staff even when the board’s Chair is vacant. Currently the PCLOB is prohibited from hiring staff unless a Senate-confirmed Chair is in place. This proposal is also included in separate bipartisan legislation introduced by Wyden and Representative Tulsi Gabbard (Haw.). PCLOB Chairman David Medine is scheduled to step down on July 1.