What Emptywheel Says

Journalist, and internet deity on privacy and national security, Marcy Wheeler explains whyshe is opposed to the latest attempt to reign in government spying, the USA Freedom Act (USAF).

Basically it comes down to the fact that neither the state security apparatus, who are operating under legal opinions that are classified, nor Barack Obama, who has kept those legal opinions from the public, can be trusted not to take an absolutely maximalist approach to any possible loopholes under any regulatory regime, and this bill is full of loopholes.  Here are her section headings:

• No one will say how the key phone record provision of the bill will work
•  USAF negotiates from a weak position and likely moots potentially significant court gains 
• USAF’s effects in limiting bulk collection are overstated
• USAF would eliminate any pushback from providers\
• USAF may have the effect of weakening existing minimization procedures
• USAF’s transparency provisions are bullsh%$
• Other laudable provisions — like the Advocate — will easily be undercut

Basically, any bill that is not passed over strenuous opposition from the Worst Constitutional Law Professor ever will be meaningless.

If Obama supports it, it will be an expansion of the surveillance state.

Read the whole thing.  It's worth it.