Joe McLaughlin’s Monday Morning Memo

This post is cross-posted from the Brock Log.

Onslow Commissioner, and Republican Congressional candidate, Joe McLaughlin writes a "Monday Morning Memo" each week. This week, McLaughlin takes aim at Congressman Walter B. Jones, Jr.'s vote on the "Protect America Act" or Senate Bill 1927.

Says McLaughlin in his Monday Morning Memo:

Late Saturday night, Jones was one of only two Republicans in the House to vote against the Protect America Act.

Surely, something called the "Protect America Act" can't be all that bad, right? Let's take a gander.

McLaughlin says that the Protect America Act will:

The Protect America Act establishes legal guidelines on how the United States can conduct surveillance against foreign nationals and is loaded with checks and balances to make sure it is not abused.

The Act does establish legal guidelines, but whether it's "loaded with checks and balances" is a different story.

For example, the chief "check and balance" is that the Attorney General and the Director of National Intelligence must authorize the surveillance. The Attorney General and Director of National Intelligence must certify that the subjects of such surveillance are "reasonably believed to be outside of the United States" which is a pretty vague standard. Judicial review is reduced under this legislation and reporting to Congress is nearly non-existent.

My biggest concern, though, is that the "Protect America Act" doesn't. Or, rather, doesn't protect Americans.

Says the WaPo:

It will be able to monitor phone calls and e-mails of U.S. citizens or residents without warrants -- unless the subject is the "primary target" of the surveillance.

That, to me, is a frightening prospect.

It's even more frightening that McLaughlin would so easily give away Americans' privacy for the appearance of "protecting America."

Consider Marshall Adame for Congress. He won't give in to the politics of fear as McLaughlin has and he won't give in to the political winds as Jones, Jr. has.