NSA under fire: Supreme Court to review legality of warrantless wiretapping of Americans

RT- NSA under fire: Supreme Court to review legality of warrantless wiretapping of Americans
Published: 22 May, 2012, 01:12


Phone calls to Prague? Emails to Ecuador? The United States government can currently sift through any international communication that crosses outside of American territory, but all that might soon change.
The US Supreme Court decided on Monday this week that they will consider a case that challenges the powers for the federal government established in the FISA Amendments Act of 2008, a legislation that allows authorities a wide breadth when getting away with snooping into private conversation in the name of national security.

Although US President Barack Obama campaigned on changing FISA back in 2008, the law on the books right now is carrying over the authoritarian powers installed under the administration of his predecessor, President George W. Bush. As it stands right now, the National Security Agency is allowed unfettered access to listening in on the conversations of Americans as long as they extend over international borders. The American Civil Liberties Union has been trying to change that, however, and might finally be able to take that fight to the highest court in the land. Read more

No comments: