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Sweeping Homeland Security Investigation Of Muslims Was Unconstitutional And Discriminatory, Says ACLU (10/31/2008)
WASHINGTON – A report in today’s New York Times revealed details of a 2004 Department of Homeland Security (DHS) anti-terrorism program that, despite government claims to the contrary, used racial profiling. More than 2,000 Muslim immigrants were investigated in the lead up to the 2004 elections, and many were interrogated right before the November election. Despite the investment of considerable resources, “Operation Front Line” produced minimal results. Most of those investigated were found to have done nothing wrong.

ACLU Welcomes Guantanamo Closure Bill (05/23/2007)
WASHINGTON - The ACLU today welcomed Senator Tom Harkin's (D-IA) introduction of the Guantanamo Bay Detention Facility Closure Act of 2007, a bill that would close the U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The bill cuts off funds for everything except sending charged or sentenced detainees to Fort Leavenworth and transferring the remaining detainees to their home countries or other countries that will not torture or abuse them. The bill would effectively end the practice of indefinite detention without charge or due process for detainees who have been held for as long as five years without charge and without knowing the reason for their detention. It will also provide an incentive for the government to finally charge those detainees the government believes are guilty of crimes against the United States.

ACLU, JACL and ADC Alarmed that Census Violated Privacy in World War II, Urges Congress to Ensure Similar Actions Are Not Happening Now (03/30/2007)
WASHINGTON - Following reports in USA Today that the Census Bureau gave American surveillance agencies information on persons of Japanese Ancestry during World War II, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) and the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) urged Congress to investigate and ensure that such practices do not occur today.

House Panel Passes Flawed Military Commission Bill, ACLU Urges Congress to Stand for Due Process and Rule of Law (09/13/2006)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union today condemned legislation passed by the House Armed Services Committee that establishes rules to try detainees. The bill also would amend the War Crimes Act to gut the Geneva Conventions.

ACLU Applauds Chairman Sensenbrenner Hearing on Capitol Hill Search, Says Other Bush Administration Conduct Must Be Examined (05/30/2006)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union today applauded House Judiciary Committee Chairman F. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI) for holding a hearing to examine the constitutionality of the recent search of the Capitola Hill office of Congressman William Jefferson (D-LA) by federal agents, and renewed its call for the committee to hold hearings on other searches and conduct of the Bush administration that ignore the rule of law.

ACLU Calls on President Not to Deploy Military Troops to Deter Immigrants at the Mexican Border (05/15/2006)
WASHINGTON - In anticipation of President Bush’s address to the nation tonight on immigration reform, the American Civil Liberties Union today called upon the president and Congress to reject any measures that fail to uphold the letter and spirit of our laws and encouraged lawmakers to adopt immigration reform that protects the freedom and privacy of all in America.

ACLU Leaders Meet with White House Privacy and Civil Liberties Board, Call for Board to Exercise Strong, Independent Role (04/27/2006)
WASHINGTON - Key leaders from the American Civil Liberties Union today met with the White House Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board in order to encourage that panel to conduct aggressive investigation and oversight over several matters of pivotal importance to the civil liberties of all Americans.

Justice Department Issues Review of Civil Liberties Abuses, ACLU Says Patriot Act Still Remains Shrouded in Secrecy (03/08/2006)
WASHINGTON - In a semi-annual report to Congress mandated by the Patriot Act, the Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General today released a report outlining allegations of civil rights and civil liberties abuses by department personnel in a broad range of areas, including mistreatment of federal prisoners, misuse of surveillance powers, mistreatment of protesters at the 2004 political conventions, and misuse of the material witness statute.

New Poll Shows Americans Reject NSA Warrantless Surveillance Program; Majority Recognize Importance of Checks and Balances Against Abuses of Power (02/24/2006)
WASHINGTON - A new poll commissioned by the American Civil Liberties Union and released publicly today shows that a majority of American voters oppose the Bush administration’s warrantless surveillance of Americans by the National Security Agency. The poll also shows a strong belief in the need for the executive branch to be subject to the checks and balances of the courts and Congress.

ACLU Urges House Committee to Act on Torture and Extraordinary Rendition, Says Adoption of Resolutions of Inquiry A Necessary Step (02/08/2006)
WASHINGTON -- The American Civil Liberties Union today urged the House International Relations Committee to adopt three resolutions of inquiry directing the Bush administration to provide all documents on the development and implementation of its torture and extraordinary rendition policies. The committee is expected to meet this afternoon.

ACLU Calls on Gonzales to Appoint Special Counsel on NSA Domestic Spying; Investigation of Violations of Law Must Be Independent, Free of Political Pressure (12/21/2005)
WASHINGTON - In a formal request to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, the American Civil Liberties Union today called for the immediate appointment of an outside special counsel to investigate and prosecute any criminal acts and violations of laws as a result of the National Security Agency’s surveillance of domestic targets as authorized by President Bush.

ACLU Praises Senate For Standing for Freedom, Rejecting White House Pressure; Calls Cloture Vote a Victory for Civil Liberties (12/16/2005)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union today applauded the Senate for rejecting a cloture motion to limit debate on legislation to reauthorize the Patriot Act that failed to make substantive changes to that law. The vote came despite increasing pressure from the White House and its allies to adopt the flawed bill. The failure to invoke cloture means efforts to fix the Patriot Act can continue.

ACLU Shocked at Bush Use of National Security Agency for Domestic Spying, Says Move Violates Constitutional Limits and Federal Laws (12/15/2005)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union today expressed shock about revelations reported in the New York Times that President Bush secretly authorized the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on conversations of Americans and others in the United States. According to the report, this spying occurred without any court order and was focused on telephone and e-mail communications of "hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people inside the United States" with persons abroad. Electronic surveillance law generally prohibits non-consensual eavesdropping in the U.S. without a court order based on probable cause.

ACLU Challenges CIA Refusal to Admit Existence of Presidential Order on Detention Facilities Abroad (12/12/2005)
NEW YORK -- In the wake of controversy over CIA “extraordinary rendition” policies and secret prisons, the American Civil Liberties Union has asked a federal court to reconsider its previous decision to uphold the CIA’s refusal to even admit the existence of two key documents on interrogation techniques and detention facilities abroad.

ACLU Seeks Clarification from Government on Comments About Innocent Victim of "Extraordinary Rendition" (12/08/2005)
NEW YORK -- The American Civil Liberties Union today sent letters to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff seeking confirmation that Khalid El-Masri, an innocent German citizen victimized by the CIA’s policy of "extraordinary rendition," is eligible to enter the United States. El-Masri was denied entry into the U.S. at Hartsfield International Airport in Atlanta on Saturday, December 3, 2005 without explanation.

ACLU Files Landmark Lawsuit Challenging CIA’s “Extraordinary Rendition” of Innocent Man (12/06/2005)
WASHINGTON -- The American Civil Liberties Union today announced the first ever lawsuit against former CIA director George Tenet challenging the CIA’s abduction of a foreign national for detention and interrogation in a secret overseas prison. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Khalid El-Masri, an innocent German citizen victimized by the CIA’s policy of “extraordinary rendition.”

FBI Retaliated Against Whistleblower for Reporting National Security Breaches, Inspector General Report Concludes (12/04/2005)
NEW YORK -- The FBI retaliated against a former undercover agent for reporting flaws in a terrorism investigation and doctored records to cover up mistakes, according to a draft report from the Justice Department’s Office of the Inspector General. The American Civil Liberties Union criticized the FBI’s actions against the agent, Mike German, and called on Congress to enact real whistleblower protections.

Government Refusing to Turn Over Records on Exclusion of Foreign Scholars, Lawsuit Charges (11/10/2005)
NEW YORK -- The State Department and other government agencies are illegally withholding records concerning the practice of excluding foreign scholars and other prominent intellectuals from the United States because of their political views, according to a lawsuit filed today by the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Association of University Professors and PEN American Center.

ACLU and Diverse Coalition of National Non-Profits Win Major Victory in Challenge to Misguided CFC Government Watch List and Contribution Policies (11/09/2005)
NEW YORK - The American Civil Liberties Union and 12 other national non-profit organizations today said they have successfully challenged Office of Personnel Management's Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) requirements that all participating charities check their employees and expenditures against several government watch lists for "terrorist activities" and that organizations certify that they do not contribute funds to organizations on those lists.

Department of Homeland Security Continues to Infringe on Whistleblower Rights, ACLU Says (11/09/2005)
LOS ANGELES - In a court motion filed today, the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California is seeking to block a new Department of Homeland Security policy that overly restricts the free speech rights of Federal Air Marshals. The ACLU charged that the policy will prevent whistleblowers from reporting mismanagement or wrongdoing and is likely to jeopardize public safety.