Posted on 01/15/2007 10:38:49 AM PST by Jay777
The NY Times continues in their quest to leak out our methods to our enemies.
The Pentagon has been using a little-known power to obtain banking and credit records of hundreds of Americans and others suspected of terrorism or espionage inside the United States, part of an aggressive expansion by the military into domestic intelligence gathering.The CIA has also been issuing what are known as national security letters to gain access to financial records from American companies, though it has done so only rarely, intelligence officials say.
Banks, credit card companies and other financial institutions receiving the letters usually have turned over documents voluntarily, allowing investigators to examine the financial assets and transactions of American military personnel and civilians, officials say.
Notice that the leaked information claims that it was hundreds, not thousands, of people suspected of terrorism or espionage. This seems to me to lean towards the side of restraint rather than abuse.
If we have enemies within, and we can't trust our own military to investigate the financial history of those that are suspect then we have bigger problems to worry about than paranoia over privacy.
(Excerpt) Read more at stoptheaclu.com ...
When it comes to the security of America, what doesnt the ACLU object to?
Love the post...thank you.
Whoa there, bubba. The military and CIA have no constitutional right to look through the records of American citizens. If they suspect terrorism, they can use the FISA court to get a warrant.
Don't toss the Fourth Amendment out the window in the name of security. I can't really imagine a situation where bank records are so urgently needed that they can't take an hour or so to make a case to the FISA court.
Of course they would, they like terrorism, especially since they are aligned with such an avenue- considering they are communists - wait! Hold the phone! ACLU means: American Communist Litigation Union.
SS
I highly suggest following the link and reading the article in full before commenting.
Government lawyers say the legal authority for the Pentagon and the CIA to use national security letters in gathering domestic records dates back nearly three decades and, by their reading, was strengthened by the antiterrorism law known as the USA Patriot Act.
Not only that, but anyone operating within the US banking system — at least at those facilities insured by the FDIC and FSLIC — the government has access to data on individual banking customers whenever it wants to access it. Any institution insured by the federal government has to give federal regulators access to their records during any extensive examination. Not only that, but since most accounts pay interest, the IRS also gets all of the information on these accounts, including taxpayer numbers and other private information.
Within the Patriot Act, which both parties passed, the use of National Security Letters, for investigating these such things is provided for. Please just read the entire linked article. Reading only the excerpts here could be misleading to the entire issue addressed.
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