Sign up now for the Bush antiterror board on civil liberties!

John Gilmore gnu at toad.com
Sun Dec 14 17:32:31 EST 2003


[Oops, I mean the Bush anti-civil-liberties board on terror.  But
seriously, folks, there seem to be some honest politicians blowing the
whistle here.  Check out the report on Monday.  PS: I am no relation
to Jim Gilmore.  -- John]

http://www.time.com/time/nation/printout/0,8816,561414,00.html

Saturday, Dec. 13, 2003
Bush Gets a 'Can Do Better' From Terror Panel
Federal advisory body complains of lack of strategy guiding domestic security efforts
By TIMOTHY J. BURGER/WASHINGTON

President Bush's anti-terrorism policies are about to come under fire
from a somewhat unlikely source: A federal advisory panel headed by a
former Republican Party chairman is set to rap the President's
knuckles this week when it issues a report criticizing the
administration for failing to develop a comprehensive, pro-active
anti-terror strategy more than two years after the 9/11 attacks.

Headed by former Virginia governor Jim Gilmore, the Advisory Panel to
Assess Domestic Response Capabilities for Terrorism Involving Weapons
of Mass Destruction voices concern, in its draft report, that civil
liberties are getting too little attention as new security measures
are proposed.   ... the source added. ?The Department of
Homeland Security is focusing on today and the crisis of the
moment. But who's looking at the broader issues of economic security
and societal stability??   ...

The advisory panel will also recommend that the President name a
bipartisan civil liberties oversight board ? drawing members from
across the political spectrum, academia and the private sector ? to
assess the impact on civil liberties of anti-terror measures such as
the Patriot Act and proposals to strengthen it. The report suggests
that greater oversight is required for any use of U.S. spy satellites
on targets inside the United States, and that legislation may be
required to set the rules. Since September 11, the National Geospatial
Imagery Agency's spy satellites have been increasingly pointed inside
U.S. borders in support of the Pentagon's new Northern Command,
charged with protecting the homeland. The agency's officials insist
they don't target American citizens. The question, said the source
familiar with the panel's work, is: ?How do we use the technology of
today to monitor the activities of citizens in a manner that protects
civil freedoms??

The panel will also recommend that the Terrorist Threat Integration
Center be established as an independent agency, and urges that the
ongoing spending of billions of dollars on anti-terror and homeland
security measures at all levels of government and in the private
sector needs to be guided by an overall strategy.
...

Copyright 2003 Time Inc. All rights reserved.
Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
[Excerpted for fair use in political discussion.]

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/ap/20031214/ap_on_go_pr_wh/terror_commission&printer=1

WASHINGTON -  President Bush should appoint an  
advisory board to assess how new anti-terrorism measures such as the  
Patriot Act have affected Americans' civil liberties, a new report by a  
federal terrorism commission says.

The commission, led by former Virginia Gov. James Gilmore, a  
Republican, also expresses concern that the Bush administration has  
failed to develop a comprehensive, forward-looking strategy to combat  
terrorism more than two years after the 2001 terrorist attacks.

  Details of the report, to be released Monday, were first reported by  
Time magazine on its Web site Saturday.
...
  The terrorism commission, composed of federal, state and local  
officials, was created after the 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in  
Kenya and Tanzania.

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