Moving Forward
As President Obama finishes his second term and America painstakingly elects a new president, it's important that we understand where our presidential hopefuls stand on government surveillance.
As President Obama finishes his second term and America painstakingly elects a new president, it's important that we understand where our presidential hopefuls stand on government surveillance.
Hillary Clinton
In a 2015 interview with The Atlantic, Hillary Clinton unsuccessfully evaded questions about NSA security. The Atlantic reports that when the Snowden scandal was happening, Clinton kept quiet, but as a presidential nominee, she won't be able to keep "quiet" for long. However, her "silence" spoke a little louder than she probably intended. When she says "what the rules are," she forgets to mention that she was involved with their implementation, as she served in the Senate from 2001 to 2009 - the same years that NSA surveillance was heavily voted on. It appears as if the issue of government surveillance, like many other issues, is one that Clinton just can't make her mind up about. (Except in this article published by TIME, Clinton calls for more surveillance to fight terror. Similarly, in this article published after the heartbreaking attack in Orlando, Florida, Clinton calls for more government surveillance. However, in a 2015 debate, when asked about government surveillance, Clinton said, "It was necessary to make sure that we were able, after 9/11, to put in place the security that was needed. What happened, however, is that the Bush administration began to chip away at the process, and I began to speak about their use of warrantless surveillance. We always have to keep the balance of civil liberties, privacy and security. It's not easy in a democracy, but we have to keep it in mind." You can draw your on conclusions on Clinton's plans for government surveillance - and her ability to crowd please.
In a 2015 interview with The Atlantic, Hillary Clinton unsuccessfully evaded questions about NSA security. The Atlantic reports that when the Snowden scandal was happening, Clinton kept quiet, but as a presidential nominee, she won't be able to keep "quiet" for long. However, her "silence" spoke a little louder than she probably intended. When she says "what the rules are," she forgets to mention that she was involved with their implementation, as she served in the Senate from 2001 to 2009 - the same years that NSA surveillance was heavily voted on. It appears as if the issue of government surveillance, like many other issues, is one that Clinton just can't make her mind up about. (Except in this article published by TIME, Clinton calls for more surveillance to fight terror. Similarly, in this article published after the heartbreaking attack in Orlando, Florida, Clinton calls for more government surveillance. However, in a 2015 debate, when asked about government surveillance, Clinton said, "It was necessary to make sure that we were able, after 9/11, to put in place the security that was needed. What happened, however, is that the Bush administration began to chip away at the process, and I began to speak about their use of warrantless surveillance. We always have to keep the balance of civil liberties, privacy and security. It's not easy in a democracy, but we have to keep it in mind." You can draw your on conclusions on Clinton's plans for government surveillance - and her ability to crowd please.
Donald Trump
In an interview with Hugh Hewitt in which he was asked about government surveillance, Trump said, "Well, I tend to err on the side of security, and I've been there for longer than you would think. But, you know, when you have people that are beheading you if you're a Christian and frankly for lots of other reasons, when you have the world looking at us and would like to destroy us as quickly as possible, I err on the side of security, and that's the way it is, and that's the way I've been, and some people that, frankly, and some people don't like that... I assume when I pick up my telephone people are listening to my conversations anyway, if you want to know the truth. It's pretty sad commentary, but I err on the side of security."
In an interview with Hugh Hewitt in which he was asked about government surveillance, Trump said, "Well, I tend to err on the side of security, and I've been there for longer than you would think. But, you know, when you have people that are beheading you if you're a Christian and frankly for lots of other reasons, when you have the world looking at us and would like to destroy us as quickly as possible, I err on the side of security, and that's the way it is, and that's the way I've been, and some people that, frankly, and some people don't like that... I assume when I pick up my telephone people are listening to my conversations anyway, if you want to know the truth. It's pretty sad commentary, but I err on the side of security."
PS - Bernie Sanders is technically no longer in the race, but we still love him. To learn more about his stance on government surveillance, follow these links:
- http://truthinmedia.com/clinton-sanders-nsa-spying-debate/
- http://feelthebern.org/bernie-sanders-on-privacy-and-digital-rights/
- http://time.com/3850839/bernie-sanders-usa-patriot-act/
The Snowden Effect
Following Edward Snowden’s release of government documents, Americans began to question the power of the government over our daily lives, and to what extent the government can be trusted to uphold individual privacy. While perceptions of government were certainly altered in the aftermath of Snowden’s whistleblowing, it is important to discuss the political changes that followed within the Obama Administration.
After the initial release, the Obama Administration assigned five policy and security experts to the task of reviewing the surveillance capabilities of the government. Obama’s Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board was also tasked with reviewing programs within the government, the two most significant of which being telephone record collection under Section 215 and spying on non-US citizens under Section 702. (White House, 2013)In early 2015 reports were released on the examination of many of these surveillance programs, to find that while there had been much talk of reforming government policies, there had been little actual development in executing these changes. (Childress, 2015)
Despite this, the report was one of the most substantial in the years following Snowden’s information release. Mark Rumold, a senior attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation responsible for tracking government disclosures, commented, “ I think the most substantial changes that have occurred come in the area of transparency.” For the first time, personal information belonging to non-US citizens can only be kept for five years if it is not important, after which it must be deleted. This is the same length of time allowed for American’s data. To Rumold, this shows a step in the right direction and a departure from previous practices in which the NSA would hold irrelevant information on non-US citizens for as long as they want. (Childress, 2015)
However even though small changes such as this have taken place, certain recommendations in policy change, even by the president’s review group, have yet to take hold. Often when collecting data on foreign individuals, American communication data is at times collected as well. While this is not direct collection, the government has maintained their ability to search the data without a warrant despite the group’s recommendation for change. In addition to this, the NSA is still continuing the bulk collection of telephone data despite Obama’s calls for an end to the program supporting it. (Childress, 2015)
Based on what has transpired in politics in the post-Snowden era, it seems that while change is occurring within the surveillance community in small steps, there are still many policy amendments that must occur in order to make substantial progress in strengthening civil liberties within the US.
Sources:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/how-the-nsa-spying-programs-have-changed-since-snowden/
https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/08/09/background-president-s-statement-reforms-nsa-programs