New York federal judge rules NSA phone surveillance is legal

nbcnews.com ^ | December 27, 2013 | Hasani Gittens

[John W]

A federal judge in New York has ruled that the National Security Agency's massive collection of American citizens' telephone records is both legal and useful.

U.S. District Judge William Pauley wrote in his opinion issued Friday that the program "represents the government's counter-punch" to eliminate al-Qaeda's terror network.

Pauley raised the specter of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and how the phone data-collection system could have helped investigators connect the dots before the attacks occurred.

Pauley's decision appears to conflict with a ruling earlier this month by U.S. District Court Judge Richard Leon, who granted a preliminary injunction against the collecting of phone records of two men who had challenged the program.

He said that the program likely violates the U.S. Constitution's ban on unreasonable search.

[444Flyer]

“If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, go home from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains set lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen.” ― Samuel Adams

[crosslink]

I think they keep every phone call, e-mail and voice message and have them stored in Utah to mine after an incident. After they caught the Boston bombers I remember a news show playing a VM of the girl friend that was made before the bombers were caught. How did they get this? If she was under surveillance they would have busted the brothers. Seemed strange then but know makes perfect sense. They dipped into the vault and pulled it out.

[Zavien Doombringer]

You almost called out the Kitties!

[Ransomed]

Super computers sorting and pulling conversations based on language, accent, keywords, location/origin of calls. Capture everything, but only concentrate on the ones that trip the parameters.

At least that’s what Michael Crichton wrote how they did it in ‘State of Fear,’ if I recall.

Freegards

[Errant]

He does look a little strange. Many of us fit that category though. :)

I tried to find more about him, but many/most of the articles about him have been removed from the sites I visited.

[gaijin]

The elder Tsarnaev was almost certainly a US asset who went rogue.

So of course our side was unruffled by repeated Russian warnings.

It is coincidence his Uncle was high up in the CIA...?

[a fool in paradise]

Middle name “Nannybloomberg”?

[plainshame]

Now we have 2 federal judges with opposite opinions therefore they nullify each other until the SC chimes in.

[a fool in paradise]

Pauley raised the specter of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and how the phone data-collection system could have helped investigators connect the dots before the attacks occurred.

BULLSTALIN. There is reluctance to interfere with Islamic terrorism. Jihadists are a protected class.

The Ft. Hood shooter was known to be in communication with Al Qaida.

The Boston bombers were known to have been training abroad for jihad.

The war on terror is over. We lost. This is merely a police state presence.

[basil]

That’s weird.......

[Forgotten Amendments]

Is ours a "free" country or isn't it?

It isn't.

[GeronL]

bump

[Zavien Doombringer]

the real problem is, a judge isn’t supposed to legislate from the bench. He is to hold the law to the constitution. Not by opinion. I don’t care if judges oppose each other - what is the law, and does it infringe on our rights?

[hondact200]

so then edward snowden than did not commit anything wrong. as according to this judge everything is legal. right uh huh. so santa claus, the easter bunny, and the great pumpkin charlie brown are not just stories they exist in reality!

[expat2]

Good point.

[circlecity]

"the program "represents the government's counter-punch" to eliminate al-Qaeda's terror network."

Well, if that's the measure then lets just get rid of all those pesky ole individual constitutional rights and then the government would have a super-duper knockout punch to eliminate those scary terrorist networks.

[Cboldt]

-- Would the libtards have let Dubya get away with something this massive? --

This suit was brought by libtards in the ACLU. The opinion says that the collections being challenged have been ongoing since May 2006 (page 12). "The government acknowledged that it has collected metadata for substantially every call in the United States since May 2006."

[M Kehoe]

This ruling should be named the "Incumbent Protection Act." The ruling party will get enough dirt from the NSA, and IRS to blackmail any future opponent.

And to the functionary reading this at the NSA, etc., no, I don't trust any of you.

5.56mm

[Vaquero]

“Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.”
Benjamin Franklin.

I understand your desire to be protected from those who would commit mayhem on American citizens. folks here at Free Republic were a little more forgiving of this during the less draconian presidency of GW Bush. But he was not all sweetness and light either and in retrospect it was a mistake to take away some of our liberty to stop the scumbags that blew up our buildings and planes.

what should have happened was that there should have been a concerted effort to block non citizens from Islamic countries from entering and/or giving them citizenship. They are a stealth bunch who would lie to their own mothers to get in and eventually gain citizenship. nothing in our constitution says we have to let anyone in as citizens. the protections are there for those already citizens

[GrandJediMasterYoda]

New York, what a surprise. The state where the Kenyan Marxist did most of his fundraising and the city that recently elected a hardcore blatant Marxist as Mayor. “Gee ya know, having a Marxist as POTUS is not a big enough disaster. Let’s have a Marxist as Mayor as well.”