NSA loses spying powers as Senator Rand Paul successfully blocks bill renewal

[-:Undertaker:-]

http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2...deadline-nears
http://www.thedailybeast.com/article...umber-one.html

Senator Rand Paul successfully blocks renewal of the Patriot Act and limits NSA spying powers

As the National Security Agency lost its authority to collect phone records of millions of Americans when the Patriot Act lapsed at midnight, it is likely to be replaced by the USA Freedom Act. Although the lapse may be brief, intelligence officials warn Americans' safety could be at risk. But civil liberties groups applauded as Senator Rand Paul forced the expiration of the once-secret programme made public by NSA contractor Edward Snowden

The NSA has temporarily lost its power to collect the phone records of millions of Americans after the US Senate failed to meet a midnight deadline for re-authorising the surveillance programme. A deadlock between Republicans in Congress meant that parts of the Patriot Act, the sweeping counter-terror legislation rushed in after September 11th, were allowed to lapse.

The NSA's authorities are likely to be restored by a slightly reformed law later this week but US officials warned that even a temporary lapse in spying capabilities could be dangerous. The reform law, known as the USA Freedom Act, puts modest restraints on the power of the NSA and would mean that phone records would be stored by phone companies instead of the American government.

The USA Freedom Act has the support of a broad majority of senators from both parties but is opposed by Rand Paul, a libertarian-leaning Republican who is running for president. Mr Paul argues that even in its modified form the mass collection of the phone records of people not suspected of any crime is unconstitutional.

"We should not be debating modifying an illegal program. We should simply end this illegal program," Mr Paul said. A political group supporting Mr Paul put out a video which casts him as hero of freedom fighting against President Barack Obama and conservatives like Ted Cruz who backed the USA Freedom compromise bill.

The USA Freedom Act has already passed the House of Representatives and Mr Obama has promised to sign it into law if it can clear the Senate.
While Mr Paul is unable to prevent its eventual passage, he has succeeded in using parliamentary procedure to delay it beyond the midnight deadline. The result is that the NSA has begun switching off parts of the dragnet surveillance programme, known technically as bulk telephony metadata collection.

As the deadline approached, Mr Paul claimed victory in temporarily halting the NSA programme.

"This is a victory no matter how you look at it," he said. "It might be short lived, but I hope that it provides a road for a robust debate, which will strengthen our intelligence community, while also respecting our Constitution."

NSA spying on innocent American citizens was uncovered by Edward Snowden

The Senate standoff is the latest turning point in a national debate over security and liberty which was sparked by Edward Snowden's disclosure of classified NSA surveillance programmes. Among the revelations in his stolen classified files was that both the Bush and Obama administrations were using a provision of the Patriot Act known as section 215 as the legal basis for collecting phone records.

A huge victory against the Republican establishment and against the Obama administration who are both united in their desire to spy on the phonecalls of innocent Americans. He'd make a damn good President simply in limiting the executive powers of the Presidential office.

Thoughts?

[xxMATTGxx]

It's the USA, it won't stop them. Although I guess you could give the guy brownie points with the temporarily halt on such matters.

[-:Undertaker:-]

It's the USA, it won't stop them. Although I guess you could give the guy brownie points with the temporarily halt on such matters.

Depends who is President.

[October]

It's the USA, it won't stop them. Although I guess you could give the guy brownie points with the temporarily halt on such matters.

Legally, they can't do anything now, unless they want the full wrath of the government to come after them.

[Earthquake]

Could you imagine if we didn't know about this? How far this could have got!

[Chippiewill]

Legally, they can't do anything now, unless they want the full wrath of the government to come after them.

Legally they can still do most things as most of the spying that the NSA does is done under an executive order, this just stops some phone logging stuff.

[Joe]

Personally if it was the same in the UK i wouldn't mind as long as my information didn't fall into the wrong hands, but then again I wouldn't know if that was happening or not. I'm all for collection of information in a counter-terrorism sense but it does need reform.

Not good for Obama, though.

[-:Undertaker:-]

Personally if it was the same in the UK i wouldn't mind as long as my information didn't fall into the wrong hands, but then again I wouldn't know if that was happening or not. I'm all for collection of information in a counter-terrorism sense but it does need reform.

Not good for Obama, though.

I'm all for the collection of information provided it is done under warrant on suspected people.

And that is the problem, it is not.