Breitbart News has learned that Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio) and Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) said in a statement Thursday that President Joe Biden will rein in surveillance. “We cannot pretend” to protect Americans’ privacy while undermining Congress’ efforts to do so.
biden issued Wednesday, an executive order protecting Americans’ sensitive data from data brokers in “countries of concern.”
Data brokers collect Americans’ personal information and often pass that data on to foreign intelligence agencies, potentially “enabling invasive surveillance, fraud, blackmail, and other privacy violations.”
The Biden administration explained in a release:
The sale of Americans’ data poses significant privacy, counterintelligence, extortion risks, and other national security risks, especially for military and national security personnel. Countries of Concern also have access to sensitive personal data on Americans to collect information about activists, academics, journalists, dissidents, politicians, members of non-governmental organizations and members of marginalized communities, and to It can also intimidate opponents, suppress dissent, and restrict Americans. Freedom of expression and other civil liberties.
The executive order requires the entire federal government, including the Department of Justice, Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), to protect the privacy of Americans abroad. .
Davidson and Biggs said in a statement to Breitbart News that Biden cannot ignore the obvious problem of law enforcement purchasing Americans’ personal data at home.
“Americans’ right to privacy cannot be ensured by allowing governments around the world to purchase our sensitive health, location, biometric, and financial data. , are circumventing the Fourth Amendment and privacy rights by purchasing these same types of data,” Davidson and Biggs said. “The Biden administration cannot pretend to support Americans’ privacy rights while undermining them by opposing closing the data broker loophole domestically. We must uphold the Fourth Amendment Not For Sale Act and ensure that the federal government cannot purchase our data to avoid warrants and subpoena requests.”
RELATED: Rep. Andy Biggs: CDC buys $420,000 worth of data to monitor Americans during coronavirus pandemic
US House of Representatives
Human rights violations under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) have received significant attention. But Biggs, Davidson and other lawmakers argue that privacy reform must be broader than regulating Section 702.
Law enforcement agencies often purchase such third-party data from data brokers, which Biggs argued circumvents the Fourth Amendment.
The report found that data brokers like Kochava were selling “an alarming amount of sensitive information about Americans.”
Video: Congressman Warren Davidson calls for amendment to ban the Department of Defense from circumventing the Fourth Amendment
US House of Representatives
Additionally, 30 House Republicans say Congress must close the data broker loophole to protect Americans’ Second Amendment rights.
Threats to Americans’ Second and Fourth Amendment rights are not limited to government purchases of location data. Commercial data brokers openly sell marketing lists containing names, addresses, and other personal information that identify “gun owners” and “shooting fanatics,” as well as “Concealed Carry – Licensed Gun Owners.” ” and specialized lists such as “Wealthy Gun Owners.” and “70 and older. Elderly gun owners.” Unfortunately, there is a loophole in the same law. The Biden administration’s acceptance of the purchase of Americans’ location data could similarly apply to the purchase of commercial lists identifying gun owners. [Emphasis added]
The parliamentarians are I got it. The bipartisan Fourth Amendment Not For Sale Act would close the data broker loophole by requiring the government to obtain a search warrant to obtain Americans’ private communications. Dew.
The House Judiciary Committee’s proposed “Protecting Liberty and Eliminating Warrantless Surveillance Act” would regulate Section 702, which would also close the data broker loophole.
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, including Reps. Biggs and Davidson on the right and Reps. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) and Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.) on the left, have sought to rein in government oversight, but Biden Mr. is owned by the administration asked for Reauthorizes controversial Section 702 of the Surveillance Act for another year.
Elizabeth Goitein, co-director of the Freedom and National Security Program at the Brennan Center for Justice, said in a statement. new york times, “This shows the government’s complete disregard for the role of Congress and the democratic process when it comes to FISA and Section 702. The government is not trying to prevent the gap; We’re not trying to prevent it.” It’s trying to bypass another year of oversight without Congressional approval. ”
Sean Moran is a policy reporter at Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter @SeanMoran3.
