Senate Rejects FBI Bid For Warrantless Access To Internet Browsing Histories (zdnet.com)

Zack Whittaker, reporting for ZDNet:An amendment designed to allow the government warrantless access to internet browsing histories has been narrowly defeated in the Senate. The amendment fell two votes short of the required 60 votes to advance. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) switched his vote at the last minute. He submitted a motion to reconsider the vote following the defeat. A new vote may be set for later on Wednesday. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) introduced the amendment as an add-on to the commerce, justice, and science appropriations bill earlier this week. McCain said in a statement on Monday that the amendment would "track lone wolves" in the wake of the Orlando massacre, in which Omar Mateen, who authorities say radicalized himself online, killed 49 people at a gay nightclub in the Florida city. The amendment, which may be reconsidered in the near future, aims to broaden the rules governing national security letters, which don't require court approval. These letters allow the FBI to demand records associated with Americans' online communications -- so-called electronic communications transactional records.

Comments

Non Stop Orwell

[tomkost]

Don't think for a second that they're done. The all out assault on our liberties by statists is non stop. The FBI failed to stop Omar Mateen after meeting with him twice, but somehow that is justification for asking for MORE spy powers? Orwellian move by the Oligarchs.

Re:sigh..

[tripleevenfall]

Is there anyone in Washington who has forwarded a sensible proposal in response to this tragedy?

All you hear from the left is "take away freedom A" and all you hear from the right is "take away freedom B".

All the while, the government had all the information they needed to act on this, they just governmented the whole thing up.

Rules Rules Rules

[TechyImmigrant]

For those not familiar with parliamentary rules, this is the archetypal dick move:

>Mitch McConnell (R-KY) switched his vote at the last minute. He submitted a motion to reconsider the vote following the defeat.

In generic rules of order, when a motion is voted down, only someone who voted against it is allowed to submit a motion to reconsider. So if it looks like you don't have enough votes to pass you motion, you vote against it and then file a motion to reconsider. The motion to reconsider has a lower vote threshold, so the failed motion is resurrected like a zombie.

Wouldn't change anything. FBI is a failure.

[Nyder]

I find it funny how when the FBI and the other letters always think that our losing our rights will stop future crimes. It won't. Because when something happens under their watch, they will just say once again, well, if we can access X without a warrant, we can keep this stuff from happening. Yet bad shit still happens anyways.

You want to stop terrorists? How about we stop making them and stop supplying them with weapons, stop giving them money for oil. Stop killing their family and friends with drones. How about we, the USA be the bigger fucking person and apologize for how we have treated the Middle East for that last 70 years. How about we stop fucking giving Saudi Arabia weapons and money.

And seriously, I'm not against guns at all, but we need smarter laws on purchasing them.

Re:sigh..

[ganjadude]

the sensible proposal is to do nothing in the immediate, gather as much information as possible, and use it within the bounds of the constitution

so no... unfortunately no one in washington has made that proposal