- On Dec 13 - The Day Saddam Was Captured - H.R. 2417 was
signed into law. In this attack on American civil liberties, John Ashcroft's
power was extended to the collection of info on every possible financial
record of an individual, from banks to travel agents to casinos to CAR
DEALERS. The person does not even have to be officially under investigation!
Just be a "person of interest." How could Congress let this happen?
Are they so busy watching Bush's right hand they don't bother to notice
that the left one is robbing America of its soul? Here's what some Congressfolk
of conscience said against the bill.
-
- Congressional Record: November 22, 2003 (Extensions)
Page E2399
-
- H.R. 2417, INTELLIGENCE AUTHORIZATION AGREEMENT
- ______
-
- speech of
-
- HON. MARK UDALL
-
- of colorado
-
- in the house of representatives
-
- Thursday, November 20, 2003
-
- Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition
to H.R. 2417. I voted for this bill earlier this year, but I cannot support
it today.
-
- I have concerns about a provision in the conference report
that would expand financial surveillance authority of our intelligence
agencies. I also had concerns about this provision in the first version
of the bill that passed the House, but I supported the bill then in the
hope that the language would be further clarified in the final conference
report. It has not been.
-
- Whereas currently banks, credit unions, and other financial
institutions are required to provide certain financial data to authorized
intelligence agencies and the Treasury Department, this legislation would
expand the list of institutions to include car dealers, pawnbrokers, travel
agents, casinos, and other businesses.
-
- This expanded definition of "financial institution"
may indeed be necessary for effective counterintelligence, foreign intelligence,
and international operations of the United States. But since this will
represent such a significant expansion of the powers of our intelligence
agencies, I believe it is important that it be clear and not go further
than necessary.
-
- In particular, I am concerned that the language in the
conference report only vaguely limits this expanded definition to financial
information. I understand that report language makes this distinction more
explicit, but that bill conferees objected to including this clarifying
language in the conference report itself. The legislative intent of this
provision is to expand surveillance in the area of financial--not other--information,
but there are no assurances that this intent will be observed when the
legislation is implemented.
-
- Mr. Speaker, this provision in the conference report
involves the privacy rights of Americans--rights that I believe strongly
we must protect even as we work to combat terrorism. Because I'm concerned
that this conference report does not strike the right balance, I am voting
against it today.
-
- ____________________
-
-
- Congressional Record: November 23, 2003 (Extensions)
Page E2423
-
- H.R. 2417, THE FISCAL YEAR 2004 INTELLIGENCE AUTHORIZATION
CONFERENCE REPORT
-
- ______
-
-
- speech of
-
- HON. BETTY McCOLLUM
-
- of minnesota
-
- in the house of representatives
-
- Thursday, November 20, 2003
-
- Ms. McCOLLUM. Mr. Speaker, it is with great dismay that
I rise to oppose H.R. 2417, the Fiscal Year 2004 Intelligence Authorization
Report.
-
- The Republican Leadership inserted a controversial provision
in the FY04 Intelligence Authorization Report that will expand the already
far-reaching USA Patriot Act, threatening to further erode our cherished
civil liberties. This provision gives the FBI power to demand financial
and other records, without a judge's approval, from post offices, real
estate agents, car dealers, travel agents, pawnbrokers and many other businesses.
This provision was included with little or no public debate, including
no consideration by the House Judiciary Committee, which is the committee
of jurisdiction. It came as a surprise to most Members of this body.
-
- It is of great concern that the Republican Leadership,
along with the Administration and Attorney General Ashcroft, would seek
to include such a non-germane, controversial provision into what should
otherwise be a nonpartisan bill. Furthermore, the Republican Leadership,
in the Senate defeated an attempt to "sunset" this provision
when they considered it. It is clear the Republican Leadership and the
Administration would rather expand on the USA Patriot Act through deception
and secrecy than debate such provisions in an open forum. The freedoms
and civil liberties of the American people are too important to allow such
an irresponsible, abusive power play by the Majority.
-
- The importance of our intelligence community has grown
significantly in the wake of the September 11th terrorist attacks and the
subsequent, continuing campaign against terrorism. The FY04 Intelligence
Authorization Report includes a number of positive, beneficial provisions
designed to improve our counterintelligence capabilities, strengthen our
ability to share information between the federal government, local and
state officials, and provide for our intelligence officers and their families.
It is unfortunate that such a controversial provision had to be included.
-
- ____________________
-
-
- Congressional Record: November 23, 2003 (Extensions)
Page E2428-E2429
-
-
- CONFERENCE REPORT ON H.R. 2417, INTELLIGENCE AUTHORIZATION
ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2004
-
- ______
-
-
- speech of
-
- HON. RON PAUL
-
- of texas
-
- in the house of representatives
-
- Thursday, November 20, 2003
-
- Mr. PAUL. Mr. Speaker, I rise with great concerns over
the Intelligence Authorization Conference Report. I do not agree that Members
of Congress should vote in favor of an authorization that most know almost
nothing about--including the most basic issue of the level of funding.
-
- What most concerns me about this conference report, though,
is something that should outrage every single American citizen. I am referring
to the stealth addition of language drastically expanding FBI powers to
secretly and without court order snoop into the business and financial
transactions of American citizens. These expanded internal police powers
will enable the FBI to demand transaction records from businesses, including
auto dealers, travel agents, pawnbrokers and more, without the approval
or knowledge of a judge or grand jury. This was written into the bill at
the 11th hour over the objections of members of the Senate Judiciary Committee,
which would normally have jurisdiction over the FBI. The Judiciary Committee
was frozen out of the process. It appears we are witnessing a stealth enactment
of the enormously unpopular "Patriot II" legislation that was
first leaked several months ago. Perhaps the national outcry when a draft
of the Patriot II act was leaked has led its supporters to enact it one
piece at a time in secret. Whatever the case, this is outrageous and unacceptable.
I urge each of my colleagues to join me in rejecting this bill and its
incredibly dangerous expansion of Federal police powers.
-
- I also have concerns about the rest of the bill. One
of the few things we do know about this final version is that we are authorizing
even more than the president has requested for the intelligence community.
The intelligence budget seems to grow every year, but we must ask what
we are getting for our money. It is notoriously difficult to assess the
successes of our intelligence apparatus, and perhaps it is unfair that
we only hear about its failures and shortcomings.
-
- However, we cannot help but be concerned over several
such failures in recent years. Despite the tens of billions we spend on
these myriad intelligence agencies, it is impossible to ignore the failure
of our federal intelligence community to detect and prevent the September
11 attacks. Additionally, it is becoming increasingly obvious that our
intelligence community failed completely to accurately assess the nature
of the
-
- [[Page E2429]]
-
- Iraqi threat. These are by any measure grave failures,
costing us incalculably in human lives and treasure. Yet from what little
we can know about this bill, the solution is to fund more of the same.
I would hope that we might begin coming up with new approaches to our intelligence
needs, perhaps returning to an emphasis on the proven value of human intelligence
and expanded linguistic capabilities for our intelligence personnel.
-
- I am also concerned that our scarce resources are again
being squandered pursuing a failed drug war in Colombia, as this bill continues
to fund our disastrous Colombia policy. Billions of dollars have been spent
in Colombia to fight this drug war, yet more drugs than ever are being
produced abroad and shipped into the United States-- including a bumper
crop of opium sent by our new allies in Afghanistan.
-
- Evidence in South America suggests that any decrease
in Colombian production of drugs for the US market has only resulted in
increased production in neighboring countries. As I have stated repeatedly,
the solution to the drug problem lies not in attacking the producers abroad
or in creating a militarized police state to go after the consumers at
home, but rather in taking a close look at our seemingly insatiable desire
for these substances. Until that issue is addressed we will continue wasting
billions of dollars in a losing battle.
-
- In conclusion, I strongly urge my colleagues to join
me in rejecting this dangerous and expensive bill.
-
- ____________________
-
- Congressional Record: December 9, 2003 (Extensions) Page
E2491
-
- CONFERENCE REPORT ON H.R. 2417, INTELLIGENCE AUTHORIZATION
ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2004 ______
-
- speech of
-
- HON. DENNIS MOORE
-
- of kansas
-
- in the house of representatives
-
- Thursday, November 20, 2003
-
- Mr. MOORE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to one provision
of the conference report before us today, which causes me to vote against
the entire measure.
-
- This legislation authorizes classified amounts in fiscal
year 2004 for 14 U.S. intelligence agencies and intelligence-related activities
of the U.S. government--including the CIA and the National Security Agency,
as well as foreign intelligence activities of the Defense Department, the
FBI, the State Department, the Homeland Security Department, and other
agencies. H.R. 2417 covers CIA and general intelligence operations, including
signals intelligence, clandestine human-intelligence programs and analysis,
and covert action capabilities. It also authorizes covert action programs,
research and development, and projects to improve information dissemination.
All of these are important and vital programs, which I support.
-
- I am voting against this measure today, however, to draw
attention to a provision which I believe should have been the subject of
more rigorous congressional analysis than merely an up-or-down vote as
part of a larger conference agreement. This measure expands the definition
of "financial institution" to provide enhanced authority for
intelligence community collection activities designed to prevent, deter
and disrupt terrorism and espionage directed against the United States
and to enhance foreign intelligence efforts. Banks, credit unions and other
financial institutions currently are required to provide certain financial
data to investigators generally without a court order or grand jury subpoena.
The conference agreement expands the list to include car dealers, pawnbrokers,
travel agents, casinos and other businesses.
-
- This provision allows the U.S. government to have, through
use of "National Security Letters," greater access to a larger
universe of information that goes beyond traditional financial records,
but is nonetheless crucial in tracking terrorist finances or espionage
activities. Current law permits the FBI to use National Security Letters
to obtain financial records from defined financial institutions for foreign
intelligence investigations. While not subject to court approval, the letters
nonetheless have to be approved by a senior government official. The PATRIOT
Act earlier had altered the standard for financial records that could be
subject to National Security Letters to include the records of someone
"sought for" an investigation, not merely of the "target"
of an investigation.
-
- While this new provision of law included in the conference
report does not amend the PATRIOT Act, I agree with the six Senators who
recently wrote to the Senate Intelligence Committee and asked them not
to move ahead with such a significant expansion of the FBI's investigatory
powers without further review. As they stated, public hearings, public
debate and legislative protocol are essential in legislation involving
the privacy rights of Americans. As a member of the House Financial Services
Committee, I am concerned that these new provisions of law could be used
to seize personal financial records that traditionally have been protected
by financial privacy laws. The rush to judgment following the attacks of
September 11, 2001, led to the rapid enactment of the PATRIOT Act, a measure
which has caused substantial concerns among many Americans who value our
constitutionally-protected liberties. Now that we are able to legislate
in this area with a lessened sense of urgency, I urge my colleagues to
step back and return this provision of H.R. 2417 to committee, where it
can undergo the rigors of the normal legislative process so that Congress,
and all Americans, can pass an informed judgment upon its merit.
-
-
-
- http://www.fas.org/irp/congress/2003_cr/h112203.html
|
