Sensenbrenner and NRA Join ACLU Lawsuit
(WASHINGTON) – On Wednesday, Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI) filed an amicus brief in the American Civil Liberties Union’s (ACLU) lawsuit against officials in the Obama Administration. The brief argues the National Security Agency’s (NSA) bulk collection of phone records violates the Patriot Act and Congress’s clear intent.
The National Rifle Association (NRA) also filed an amicus brief in the ACLU’s lawsuit questioning whether the Administration could violate our Second Amendment rights under its misinterpretation of Section 215. A Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) training manual specifically lists gun sales as records the FBI can obtain under Section 215, the so-called business records provision of the Patriot Act.
Congressman Sensenbrenner: “The NSA’s dragnet collection of data is a violation of Americans’ privacy rights and a misinterpretation of the law. Bulk data collection has frightening implications. The Administration believes every phone call that every American makes is relevant to terrorism investigations. Does it also believe every gun sale is relevant? The same flawed legal argument could be used to build a national gun database, violating our Second Amendment rights.
“This misinterpretation of the law threatens our First, Second and Fourth Amendment rights. Congress never intended this. I will rein in the abuse of both the Patriot Act and the U.S. Constitution with the support of the American public.”