Last month, Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont introduced a new version of the USA Freedom Act, an important first step toward reining in government surveillance powers and reclaiming your privacy.
As Neema wrote over on the national blog:
To put this in historical context: If the Senate passes the bill, it will be the first time since passage of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act in 1978 that the chamber has taken action to constrain the intelligence community, and the first time Congress has a real shot at restoring the crucial privacy protections lost in the Patriot Act. To quote Joe Biden during the signing of the healthcare bill, "This is a big f---ing deal."
The bill makes important changes to the law that will have a real impact by:
- Ending bulk surveillance and limiting the government’s ability to sweep up the communications of thousands of innocent people
- Enhancing transparency and reporting about the nature of government surveillance
- Creating a special advocate to participate in FISA court proceedings to represent privacy interests
As we've proven time and time again, Mainers care about our privacy - a lot. And so should our elected officials.
Contact Senators Susan Collins and Angus King and tell them to support the compromise version of the USA Freedom Act. It’s time to put the brakes on runaway government surveillance.
