eIt is beginning to be reminiscent of the Richard Nixon administration's attempt to stifle dissent by spying on American citizens. Thirty-five years ago, President Richard Nixon claimed constitutional authority to wiretap Americans' phone calls.
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Obama's administration has been under fire since it posted a blog that asked its supporters to e-mail any "fishy" information about health care reform on the Web or received electronically to flag@whitehouse.gov. Critics called it an "Orwellian" tactic designed to control health care debate.
Orwell's novel, 1984, has become famous for its portrayal of pervasive government surveillance and control, and government's increasing encroachment on the rights of the individual. Since its publication, many of its terms and concepts, such as " Big Brother", "doublethink ", and "Newspeak" have entered the popular vernacular. The word "Orwellian " itself has come to refer to anything reminiscent of the book's fictional regime.
Legal experts say Obama has run afoul of the law that prohibits him from collecting and storing data on people who disagree with it. What should be more perplexing for the White House is that there is a statute that requires it to retain all communication that it receives.
According to Judge Andrew Napolitano
If the White House deletes anything, it violates one statute. If it collects data on the free speech, it violates another one.
Jay Sekulow, chief counsel of the American Center for Law and Justice said,This move is an attempt to intimidate those who have legitimate concerns about the health care plan.
It has turned the White House into some sort of self-appointed "speech police"....that strikes at the heart of the First Amendment.
Just as the Nixon thought he could get away with violating the right to free speech, Obama is apparently pushing that to the limit. However, the effort of the White House to track American citizens through their use of the electronic media may be just one more reason for voters to fear the man who had promised to bring "hope" and "change" into the government. Instead he has brought distrust.
Privacy Act of 1974
http://www.ftc.gov/foia/privacy_act.shtm
Nixon attempt at spying on Americans
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2006/01/08/MNGHGGK8OC1.DTL
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Comments
the Nixon spying article you link to discusses President Bush's claim of Executive priviledge to spy - it is true that Obama lawyers have continued to assert it.
On the otherhand there is no law that says that an email someone sends with their email address is private - it goes through many computers before it arrives at it's destination. And in case you forgot the government already knows your home address from your IRS filings.
The president's office is not required to keep all the emails and letters it receives from the public - that has never been the case.
Remember all those domestic spying allegations against George "W"? Were you writing lame articles about that too? Probably not, since he was a Republican and they NEVER do any wrong, but obviously Obama is a Democrat and they can never do anything right! The Republicans are not always right, just as the Democrats are not always right. I am against domestic spying regardless if a it is a Republican or a Democrat.
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