Civil Liberties
1,368 Articles
On Trees Falling Silently in Oversight Forests: Three Reflections on Yesterday’s HPSCI Hearing
Although it’s been overtaken by subsequent events, I thought I’d post some reflections on yesterday’s rare open hearing before the House Permanent Select Committee…
Live Feed of HPSCI Hearing on Potential Changes to FISA [Update: hearing now complete]
[Update (5:15 pm): The HPSCI Hearing on Potential Changes to FISA is now complete. Recorded video of the hearing testimony is provided below in two parts, due to the length of…
We Are All Foreigners: NSA Spying and the Rights of Others
The New York Times reports today that President Obama is expected to ban eavesdropping on the phones of our allies’ presidents and prime ministers. There is no indication,…
My Written Statement for Tomorrow’s HPSCI “NSA Programs” Hearing
Tomorrow afternoon beginning at 1:30, the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (“HPSCI”) is holding a rare open hearing, the subject of which is “NSA…
Hands Off Encryption! Say New Amici Briefs in Lavabit Case
The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals is in the process of deciding the first legal challenge to government seizure of the master encryption keys that secure our communications with…
Ghailani: Constitutional “Cross-Ruffing,” and Why I Worry…
I’ve now had a chance to read yesterday’s Second Circuit decision in Ghailani, affirming the conviction of the one terrorism suspect transferred from Guantánamo to…
Laura Donohue’s Comprehensive Case Against Bulk Metadata Collection
Our good friend and Georgetown Law Professor Laura Donohue has been kind enough to share with us an advance draft of her latest article, “Bulk Metadata Collection: Statutory…
A Federal Shield Law is Needed to Protect Confidential Sources and the Public’s Right to Know: A Reply to David Pozen
[The post below is part of an exchange between Dave Pozen and Sophia Cope on media shield laws and the recently proposed Free Flow of Information Act. Don’t miss Dave’s…
Why a Media Shield Law May Be a Sieve
[The post below is part of an exchange between Dave Pozen and Sophia Cope on media shield laws and the recently proposed Free Flow of Information Act. Don’t miss Sophia’s…
The Solicitor General Should Correct the Record in Clapper
In yesterday’s New York Times, Charlie Savage confirmed something we’ve suspected for some time—that until very recently the Justice Department was failing to provide statutorily…
We All Go Down Together: NSA Programs Overseas Violate Americans’ Privacy, Yet Escape FISC, Congressional Oversight
Ongoing revelations show that significant NSA surveillance activities take place outside of either Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) or congressional oversight, even…
United States Report to the UN Human Rights Committee: Lex Specialis and Extraterritoriality
The United States was poised to present its views tomorrow to the Human Rights Committee, which monitors state parties’ compliance with the International Covenant on Civil…