EFF Statement on Passage of Massie-Lofgren Amendment Regardi

[James C]

EFF Statement on Passage of Massie-Lofgren Amendment Regarding NSA Backdoors

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2014/06/e ... sing-house

Today, the US House of Representatives passed an amendment to the Defense Appropriations bill designed to cut funding for NSA backdoors. The amendment passed overwhelmingly with strong bipartisan support: 293 ayes, 123 nays, and 1 present.

Currently, the NSA collects emails, browsing and chat history under Section 702 of the FISA Amendments Act, and searches this information without a warrant for the communications of Americans—a practice known as "backdoor searches." The amendment would block the NSA from using any of its funding from this Defense Appropriations Bill to conduct such warrantless searches. In addition, the amendment would prohibit the NSA from using its budget to mandate or request that private companies and organizations add backdoors to the encryption standards that are meant to keep you safe on the web.

[gcmartin]

This is a good thing, right? Did you forget that while all the public attention is on NSA, the other intelligence departments continue to operate full swing for US companies they can legally harvest information from. Congress is just grandstanding in front of the public for upcoming midterm votes while trying to give an allusion that they are addressing the problem.

This is NOT a change in laws, it a budget action which does NOT change the law that allows intelligence departments to operate. further, a budget action could be mired when THEY go to approve the budget, which doesn't occur until Sept, 2014. And, their striking of the current item does not rule out that next time they play "Government budget games" they wont put it back in or finance support it another way. Again, aside from their annual Budget responsibility they are suppose to make good LAWS, continuously!

Most US citizen don't know that EVERY Representative and Senator have a "job description item" to annually approved the budget for government operation. They have been playing games while NOT DOING THEIR JOBS since the current President was elected playing godawful games with America's government. At NO OTHER TIME IN AMERICA's HISTORY have they done this. This arose at a time when the US Public elected a minority American to be President. And, they have done this to its public for the past years continuously. They don't do their annual job, and tell the people its someone else fault they don't do their job as they shutdown US government operations. What a group, in US House of Representatives! In fact, their tract record over the past years in the ABSOLUTE worst in US history... only a few laws, and NOT doing their annual job. How do you get paid a quarter-million dollars a year as a first "termer" and not do NOTHING credible for the American people except to bitch?

I believe most are in favor of reeling in the Intelligence agencies. But, I think US Congress has done everything in their power to confuse the public on what principles they stand for.