Wiretap Ruling Threatens Telecoms

ches_grin writes "Yesterday's ruling on the NSA warrantless wiretapping program could mean that businesses that assisted in the program are in for some serious legal problems. The judge's decision clearly dismissed out of hand the arguments of the telecoms, saying that the protections due journalists and lawyers was a clear matter of the public's best interests." From the article: "Businesses accused of aiding the Bush administration in wiretapping could also be in for a legal bruising, say civil liberties groups that have sued telecom providers AT&T, Verizon, and BellSouth for allegedly helping the NSA. The ruling could set a precedent other courts can't ignore. 'Every phone company that is assisting the government in its illegal surveillance would want to think long and hard before it continues that agreement,' says Ann Beeson, the ACLU's lead attorney in the case. 'There are already lawsuits claiming that their cooperation for the past several years is illegal and now that the judge has declared it is illegal, their liability increases. The risk is much greater from a business perspective.'"

Comments

Re:Limited Government.

[cold fjord]

They have reduced education and social spending (mostly through crippling unfunded mandates). They have left the science budget the same but selectively trimmed spending on some subjects e.g. Global Warming.

You are either clueless, or making this up.

Education spending has shot up under the Bush administration.... as has social welfare spending.

But when it comes to spying on Americans and invading others no amount is too high and no law apparently can stand.

So, to summarize, you disagree with the policy, and don't understand the law.

This isn't flamebait, I'm being serious,

No you aren't being serious. You are getting things wrong that are trivial to get right.