Slashdot Mirror
New Bill Would Declassify FISC Opinions
Trailrunner7 writes "A group of eight senators from both parties have introduced a new bill that would require the attorney general to declassify as many of the rulings of the secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court as possible as a way of bringing into the sunlight much of the law and opinion that guides the government's surveillance efforts. Under the terms of the proposed law, the Justice Department would be required to declassify major FISC opinions as a way to give Americans a view into how the federal government is using the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act and Patriot Act. If the attorney general determines that a specific ruling can't be declassified without endangering national security, he can declassify a summary of it. If even that isn't possible, then the AG would need to explain specifically why the opinion needs to be kept secret."
If the attorney general determines that a specific ruling can't be declassified without endangering national security, he can declassify a summary of it. If even that isn't possible, then the AG would need to explain specifically why the opinion needs to be kept secret.
And such explanations would probably look something like this: "Opinion number M-9458985 needs to be kept secret because [blacked-out] which is a very serious allegation that has been confirmed by [blacked-out] and [blacked-out] as well as the following independent intelligence sources: [blacked-out]. If this opinion were to be made public it could easily have the following horrible consequences: [blacked-out]"
Only to idiots, are orders laws.
-- Henning von Tresckow
Maintaining operational security is an excellent reason.
However, I agree that this catch-all heading they call "National Security" isn't the same thing. It's more like a label for getting away with covering things up.
I am NOT in favor of what Snowden did, and I think he should be tried, and if found guilty, sent to jail for what he did. Nevertheless, there is a culture of slapping a classification on stuff that doesn't need that sort of classification. And there is a tendency to hide behind that classification. That needs to stop.
If something actually needs to be Top Secret, then it does need to remain protected, but that sort of classification needs to be reserved for something that either will risk lives, or substantially give away capabilities that we have which no one at all knows about. And let's face it, if you were surprised about any of these "revelations", I am not sure what cave you have been living in since the 1970s. Everyone knows what the NSA does and basically how they do it, especially the Chinese and Russians, but certainly the terrorists too.
Hold leakers responsible for their actions, but fix the classification system too.