http://www.cnn.com/2007/LAW/03/09/se...ers/index.html

http://www.usdoj.gov/oig/special/s0703b/final.pdf

"WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The FBI is guilty of "serious misuse" of the power to secretly obtain private information under the Patriot Act, a government audit said Friday.

The Justice Department's inspector general looked at the FBI's use of national security letters, in which agents demand personal and business information about individuals -- such as financial, phone, and Internet records -- without court orders.

The audit found the letters were issued without proper authority, cited incorrect statutes or obtained information they weren't supposed to.

As many as 22 percent of national security letters were not recorded, the audit said.

"We concluded that many of the problems we identified constituted serious misuse of the FBI's national security letter authorities," Inspector General Glenn A. Fine said in the report."

........

"The FBI has made as many as 56,000 requests a year for information using the letters since the Patriot Act was passed in October 2001, the audit found.

A single letter can contain multiple information requests, and multiple letters may target one individual.

The audit found that in 2004 and 2005, more than half of the targets of the national security letters were U.S. citizens"

........

"The audit also found problems with "exigent letters" which are supposed to be used only in emergencies when time may not permit the national security letter procedure to be followed.

The audit found exigent letters were not used in emergencies and gave the agency access to telephone records it should not have had."

........

"Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pennsylvania, said the Patriot Act may have to be changed and the FBI's power curtailed because "they appear not to be able to know how to use it." "


http://www.fas.org/irp/agency/doj/oig/natsec.pdf

http://www.aclu.org/safefree/nationa...s20070309.html

http://www.aclu.org/safefree/nationa...l20070309.html

http://cdt.org/

http://www.eff.org/news/archives/2007_03.php#005152

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Out of all that, let this one quote sink in deep:

"The audit found that in 2004 and 2005, more than half of the targets of the national security letters were U.S. citizens"

Really think we've got that many potential "terrorists" running around? No? Then why are that many NSL's being passed out on legitimate, innocent American citizens?

Gee - looks like Feingold was totally right after all.

Have a great weekend, boys and girls. Pete

Are you suprised?

Surprised? No. (I tried to point this out a long time ago).

Disgusted? Yes.

If you - or anyone else here - doesn't particularly care for the idea of the governments' being allowed to spy on you at will, for no reason, illegally, you might want to visit this link

http://action.eff.org/site/Advocacy?id=283

and let your Representatives know about it. (I've c&p'd their letter and FAX'ed it from here to both my Senators and my Representative, too - I suggest you do the same).

Just think - if people would have heeded the warnings prior to the 'patriot' act re-authorization, we wouldn't even have to be dealing with the aftermath now.

The 'patriot' act re-authorization (which included the NSL provisions) passed BARELY by two votes in the House of Representatives.

How many people do you think it would have taken - writing, phoning, FAX'ing and emailing their Reps in opposition to the re-authorization - to have changed that result?

Unless we act now, it'll never get straightened out - and this is irrefutable PROOF that it needs to be. Pete

http://action.eff.org/site/Advocacy?id=283

The 'patriot' act (which contains the NSL provisions) only got re-authorized by two votes in the House of Representatives.

We could have changed that outcome and made them make it right before passing the re-authorization - but we didn't.

Isn't it time to make them do it right? Pete

I for one will visit the site you referenced. This whole "homeland security" deal is in fact an over reaction to a terribly tragic event. The agency needs to be reintegrated with previously existing agencies that are already mandated to protect the people before it becomes firmly entrenched. The last thing we need is another branch of government. To paraphrase a statement made by William E. Simon when he was Secretary of the Treasury - "The American people already have more government than they want, need, or willing to pay for."