Today, US Rep. Ed Perlmutter voted with a majority of his colleagues in the House of Representatives to strengthen our nation’s terrorism laws, while protecting American’s constitutional rights. The House of Representatives passed the RESTORE Act, HR 3773 by a vote of 227 to 189.
"We cannot allow this Administration to continue breaking the law and eroding our civil liberties by conducting warrantless wiretaps on innocent Americans in the name of fighting terrorism," said Perlmutter. "While threats against our homeland are real, this bill allows our intelligence community to do their job in an effective, efficient manner, but it restores accountability and oversight by all three branches of government to ensure surveillance on Americans is legally conducted in accordance with our Constitution and our fundamental democratic values."
The bill provides a mechanism to conduct foreign electronic surveillance for national security threats, but requires the government to certify that targets of surveillance are not U.S. persons. If the government seeks to conduct surveillance on an American at home, they must get a formal FISA (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act) court order or warrant.
The RESTORE Act does not extend Fourth Amendment protections to overseas targets such as Osama bin Laden and other members of terrorist organizations. Additionally, under this legislation, a court order or warrant is never required for surveillance of purely foreign-to-foreign communications.
Congressman Perlmutter stated, "This bill is a careful balance between security and liberty. The RESTORE ACT provides our intelligence community with the necessary tools to prevent another terrorist attack, while at the same time protects innocent Americans’ constitutional rights and freedoms."
