As Anthony alluded earlier we have a gift that keeps on
giving – the revelation of new privacy abuse by the Bush administration. He’s
issued a signing statement asserting the government’s power to open first class
mail without a warrant. America seems to have been given quite a few of these
“gifts” since we learned of the Government’s illegal wiretapping scheme via the
New York Times just over one year ago. Throughout the year these unsolicited
“gifts” have begun to pile up in the darkest corners of America’s house - like dust and dirt. Our house needs a
thorough cleaning, so let’s open up the curtains, let the sun shine in, roll up
our sleeves and get to work.
Congress is back to work and also appears ready to clean
house. They’ve initiated a fresh
start by addressing ethics rules, re-instituting federal deficit controls and
setting new policy in House proceedings.
We have some advice to give Congress on how to manage the
to-do list for restoring our rights and freedoms guaranteed by the
Constitution.
We urge Congress to take the following action now to give us
back our freedom: amend the Military Commissions Act to restore habeas corpus;
stop warrantless NSA surveillance; protect our privacy; end torture and abuse;
and prohibit the automatic application of the state secrets privilege and
sensitive security information designation by the administration.
Amend MCA and restore habeas corpus
It is hard to believe this happened in America, but last
October the president and the Congress enacted the Military Commissions Act of
2006 - which gives any
President the power to decide who is and who is not an enemy of our country,
and to imprison certain people indefinitely without charging them with a crime.
Even more startling is the fact that the new law eliminates
fundamental due process as protected by the Constitutional right of habeas
corpus. Habeas corpus is the right to question your confinement and is what
separates America from other countries. To do away with this core American value
makes us more like those we are fighting against.
The only thing scarier than a government that would take away
our basic freedoms is a Congress and a people that would let it happen. It is
time for Congress to restore due process, defend the Constitution, and protect
American values. Congress must correct the October mistake.
Stop NSA warrantless wiretapping
Whatever inherent powers the president might have under
Article II of the Constitution, they do not include the power to conduct a
warrantless, indefinite and unlimited domestic surveillance campaign that is
expressly prohibited by law. America must learn the scope of the NSA warrantless
wiretapping program - who has been spied on - what has been done with the
information - and who authorized it.
Protect Privacy
The Patriot Act, national security letters, 215 orders, and
sneak and peek warrants expose our medical, financial and private records to
unwarranted scrutiny and potential identity theft. It is perhaps the greatest
assault on the privacy of ordinary Americans.
With several provisions of the Patriot Act set to expire
again in 2009, the 110th Congress must use this time to make
meaningful changes to bring this law in line with the Constitution.
Stop torture and abuse
The government continues to claim that it has the power to
designate who is an
“enemy combatant” and
to detain them indefinitely without charge. Investigations into detention
centers have revealed severe human rights abuses and violations of international
law and the Geneva Conventions. And the practice of rendition - secretly
kidnapping people and moving them to foreign countries where they are tortured
and abused - is slowly being revealed through first-hand accounts told by
innocent victims. Government-sponsored torture is a shameful chapter in
American history and it must stop.
Congress should appoint a special counsel or oversight
committee to determine where the illegal policies originated in the
chain-of-command and seek appropriate disciplinary action.
Curb state secrets privilege and Sensitive Security
Information
The Bush administration avoids any scrutiny of its illegal
behavior by hiding behind a veil of secrecy. The government has used a variety
of tactics to deny court review of key facts that could reveal unconstitutional
and illegal actions by federal officials.
The Bush administration has been one of the most secretive in
our history. The Freedom of Information Act has been weakened through
willful noncompliance, the administration has led a campaign of reclassification
and increased secrecy -- including the expansion of a catch-all category of
“sensitive but unclassified” -- and has made sweeping claims of “state secrets”
to stymie judicial review of its policies that erode civil liberties. And
to thwart the media’s role in exposing questionable and illegal conduct, the
administration wants to prosecute journalists under the Espionage Act of 1917.
Congress must restore greater transparency by limiting the
state secrets doctrine and the use of SSI designation for unclassified material.
Likewise, Congress must also strengthen FOIA and protect whistleblowers.
Our nation’s Congress should stop sweeping dust under the rug
and clean up the House and the Senate.
Doing so will bring us closer towards realizing the dreams of freedom and
equality envisioned in our Constitution.
