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Coalition Letter to the Senate Strongly Urging a "No" Vote on the FISA Amendments Act, H.R. 6304 (07/07/2008)

ACLU Letter to Senate Members Urging Opposition to H.R. 6304, the FISA Amendments Act (06/25/2008)
The American Civil Liberties Union strongly urges you to vote “NO” on H.R. 6304, the FISA Amendment Acts of 2008. This bill unconstitutionally and unnecessarily permits the government to vacuum up Americans’ international communications, without a connection to al Qaeda, terrorism, or even to national security. While there is limited prior review by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, the protection afforded by that review is almost completely illusory. H.R. 6304 also grants retroactive immunity to companies that facilitated warrantless wiretapping over the last seven years. For these reasons, we ask you to stand with the Constitution and vote no on this overreaching legislation. Because this bill essentially eviscerates the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act and many of the Fourth Amendment protections it contained, we will be scoring this vote.

ACLU Letter to the House Of Representatives Strongly Urging Opposition to H.R. 6304 , The FISA Amendments Act of 2008 (06/19/2008)

ACLU Analysis of Telecom Immunity Provision in Senator Bond's Proposal of May 21, 2008 (06/12/2008)
Despite claims that Senator Bond’s proposal will allow court review of the pending lawsuits against telecoms that illegally released consumer communications and records, the draft very clearly prevents the courts from determining whether those activities actually complied with the law. Instead, it directs the secret FISA court to dismiss all cases on a showing merely that the telecoms received a piece of paper from the government – regardless of what it said. Here’s what the Bond proposal really does:

Testimony of Caroline Fredrickson on Overclassification Before the House Subcommittee on Intelligence, Information Sharing and Terrorism Risk Assessment (06/11/2008)

ACLU Letter to Senate Judiciary Leadership Urging the Questioning into the National Security Council's Role in Torture (06/09/2008)
The American Civil Liberties Union strongly urges you to question Justice Department Inspector General Glenn Fine, at the committee hearing tomorrow, on the role of the National Security Council, including then-National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice and then-NSC Legal Counsel John Bellinger, in the torture issue.

Joint Letter from Members of Congress to Attorney General Mukasey Urging the Appointment of Special Counsel (06/06/2008)

Sign On Letter to House Homeland Security, Intelligence and Judiciary Committees Opposing Funding for Domestic Spy Satellites (06/04/2008)

ACLU One Pager on the State Secrets Protection Act of 2007, H.R. 5607 (06/03/2008)

ACLU Letter to Rep. Delahunt, Chairman of House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on International Organizations, Human Rights and Oversight (06/03/2008)
The American Civil Liberties Union strongly urges you to question Justice Department Inspector General Glenn Fine, at the subcommittee hearing tomorrow, on the roles of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Legal Adviser to the Secretary of State John Bellinger in the torture issue.