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Hi,
Major US cities are burning and Trump is about to pour gas on the fires. The Trump Administration wants to spy on your internet search and browser history without a warrant, and Congress is about to facilitate it.1
But it actually, surprisingly, gets even worse: when Trump refers to protesters and “antifa” as domestic terrorists, he’s signaling that he wants the FBI, NSA, and a host of other intelligence agencies to use vast surveillance powers to target and harass protesters without needing a warrant.
Congress can stop the Trump administration from invading Americans’ internet privacy in this critical moment, but they need to feel the pressure from you to stop this from happening.
The Trump administration is threatening to use the government’s massive surveillance powers, like the PATRIOT Act, to spy on Americans without a warrant. And the implications are terrifying.
Trump has already demonstrated his desire to use “overwhelming military force” to squash peaceful protests across the country. That coupled with a massive internet spying dragnet would undermine free speech on the internet.
The Trump administration has already tried to use surveillance power against protesters. Back in 2017, Trump’s DOJ attempted to collect the IP addresses of 1.3 million people who visited an anti-inauguration website. Clearly, the only privacy Trump is concerned about is his own, and he’s willing to erode free society to maintain his grip on power.
We must fight back. We nearly won in both the Senate and the House, rallying bipartisan opposition to handing Trump these spying powers. But leadership went around that opposition. The House voted to send the Patriot Act renewal to a conference committee. The Senate hasn’t yet agreed. If we can get them to oppose that request, we’ll have another shot at removing these warrantless spying powers.
If we lose this fight, the Trump administration will teeter closer to authoritarianism while targeting anyone who doesn’t politically support Trump. It’s time to take action and stand on the right side of history.
Thanks for taking action,
Tihi and the team at Demand Progress
Sources:
1. Vice, “Activists Are Trying to Stop the FBI From Snooping on Your Web History,” May 18, 2020.
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