NSA authority for extensive data collection expires on Sunday.
That’s just fine with many of us. We objected to it in the beginning. It did us little good to object. Our Senators and Representatives ‘knew better’ than the rest of us ‘what is good for us’.
South Dakota’s two Senators are in lock step with the extension of the NSA program. Both Thune and Rounds voted in favor of the extension, and will certainly continue that support when the Senate takes it up again this coming Sunday.
The bill title begins this way: “A bill to extend authority relating to roving surveillance, access to business records…” Even with Thune and Rounds supporting it, Senator McConnell was unable to pass the extension. This coming Sunday they meet to try again.
The argument that seems to take center stage is that we need to “extend” the program so we can “revise” the program. That sounds as rational as the now-infamous Pelosi quote, “We have to pass the bill so we can find out what’s in the bill.”
Proponents suggest that if we let the current program expire and just ‘start over’ to create a program that could make sense without compromising our privacy and freedom, it would just be “to hard” to get it passed. Good! Those who support this program argue that we MUST allow it to protect America.
Benjamin Franklin would have begged to differ. His sentiments on this kind of invasion of privacy were made pretty clear when he said,
“Those who surrender freedom for security will not have, nor do they deserve, either one.”
Not that it will do any good, or change their vote… but you should contact these two Senators and tell them how you feel about their support for the NSA.
***Gordon Howie is an author and CEO of Life and Liberty Media***
“It’s not about right or left, it’s about Right or Wrong.”
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