How The Surveillance Bill Could Help Trump Crack Down on the Media
www.rollingstone.com
Congress appears ready to give the president — and future administrations — expansive new warrantless wiretapping capabilities.

I’m not wild about the headline – it’s the Biden administration that’s pushing for this bill, so why let them off the hook? It’s one of those rare issues that cut across partisan lines, with reformers and surveillance hawks in both parties working together. Still, the article makes some very good points.

The legislation, which would reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, includes a provision that would broaden the types of businesses that agencies can compel to help the government spy without a warrant… The fact sheet says the change closes “a dangerous loophole,” and calls it a “carefully crafted and narrowly tailored fix.”

But experts say the provision is extremely broad — and that it could potentially allow agencies to enlist office landlords, security guards, and cleaning crews as spies, without a warrant, and demand they help the government tap into communications equipment to facilitate data collection.

  • AutoTL;DRBEnglish
    3•2 months ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:

    Critics worry the legislation could empower the government to spy on journalists and compromise their confidential sources with ease — a concerning prospect that could feel far more troublesome if Donald Trump gets elected president again.

    The legislation, which would reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, includes a provision that would broaden the types of businesses that agencies can compel to help the government spy without a warrant.

    But experts say the provision is extremely broad — and that it could potentially allow agencies to enlist office landlords, security guards, and cleaning crews as spies, without a warrant, and demand they help the government tap into communications equipment to facilitate data collection.

    Seth Stern, director of advocacy at the Freedom of the Press Foundation, warns Rolling Stone that the House bill “would let intelligence agencies commandeer countless American businesses and individuals to spy on journalists and their sources on the government’s behalf.”

    At Trump’s rallies, the ex-president and presumptive 2024 GOP nominee has trotted out a recurring laugh-line about sending journalists to prison — so that they can get raped and tortured into giving up confidential information about their sources.

    Sean Vitka, policy director at Demand Progress, says that “with the specter of another Trump administration, we need to see clearly the ways this would be wielded to go after political opponents, the press, and countless others — all of which could be done with devastating effect but no court approval.”

    The original article contains 1,476 words, the summary contains 244 words. Saved 83%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!