Tag Archives: Congressional Progressive Caucus

This Is A Reminder

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This is another reminder that Section 702 needs to be unauthorized instead of approved by April 19.

On Monday, Just the News posted the following:

Conservative lawmakers are calling for an end to warrantless surveillance of Americans ahead of a House floor vote on Wednesday to reauthorize the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).

The bill, titled the “Reforming Intelligence and Securing America Act,” would extend section 702 of FISA, which “authorizes the targeted collection of foreign intelligence information from non-U.S. persons located abroad,” according to the FBI.

Conservative Republicans and some Democrats such as Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, have teamed up to push for a warrant requirement as a condition for reauthorizing FISA. However, the legislation up for a vote on Wednesday does not include a warrant requirement in its current form. 

“No matter how hard the deep state cries, Congress must NOT reauthorize FISA 702 without requiring a warrant to search U.S. citizens,” wrote Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, on X.

“The SAFE Act contains a warrant requirement, the Lee-Leahy reforms, language ensuring that our Fourth Amendment rights can’t be bought and sold, and a handful of other protections necessary to protect Americans’ privacy,” he also wrote.

The article concludes:

The Brennan Center for Justice and other organizations wrote a letter on April 5 urging lawmakers to vote in favor of amendments to the bill up for a vote that will require a warrant.

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Turner, R-Ohio, a proponent of the legislation up for a vote on Wednesday, predicted the bill will pass.

“I think it will,” Turner said Sunday on CNN. “I think that those who mischaracterize this are small compared to those who understand that this goes to the heart of our ability to get intelligence. It allows us to be able to keep Americans safe. This is not a warrantless surveillance of Americans.”

Biggs argued that the bill Turner supports is “very modest, very incremental” and does not contain significant reforms to Section 702.

“Quite frankly, it’s going to be who’s watching the henhouse. It’s going to be the FBI still watching the henhouse,” he said. 

It has become obvious that the people in charge cannot be trusted with warrantless surveillance. Let’s not give them the right to do warrantless surveillance.

It May Not Have Been Very Funny, But I Believe It Was A Joke

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Even as a retiree, I sometimes get too busy to pay attention to what the news is actually saying. And when I pay attention to the mainstream news media, I generally get confused. Recently I wondered why Allen West would make the remark he made recently about communists. It really doesn’t seem to fit with the entire picture of who he is.

Well, I got my answer this morning when I heard the full story on my local talk radio show (Helen Glover). It seems that the sound bite played by the media was not the entire sound bite. Why am I not surprised at this?

The Huffington Post reports:

West’s video is nearly 30 seconds longer but adds little in the way of content. Most of the added time is taken up by audience members murmuring after West states that “about 78 to 81 members of the Democrat Party that are members of the Communist Party,” which was the focus of the original video from the Democrats. After the reaction dies down, West identifies his alleged Communists.

“No, they actually don’t hide it. It’s called the Congressional Progressive Caucus,” he tells the audience.

I think the video released by Allen West  totally changes the content–even if the Huffington Post doesn’t. I suspect the comment was made rather tongue in cheek. Unfortunately, a lot of the mainstream media and the left have lost their sense of humor. Maybe they should look for it the same place they lost their sense of fiscal responsibility!

 

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