CDR: Congressmen spar over police administrative subpoena-snooping bill

[Declan McCullagh]

[Also Rep. Bill McCollum, hardly a friend of privacy, has been defending it 
in the House. --Declan]


http://www.cluebot.com/article.pl?sid=00/10/20/2341243&mode=nested

    Congressmen Duel Over Police Snooping Bill
    posted by cicero on Friday October 20, @11:31PM
    from the with-friends-like-these dept.

    Privacy defenders and privacy invaders spent this week sparring
    over a bill called the Presidential Threat Protection Act of
    2000. Already approved by the Senate, it's set to be voted on by the
    House shortly. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), the wiretap-happy senator
    who likes to pose as an occasional friend of civil liberties, is a
    sponsor, as is Orrin Hatch, a Utah Republican who's been trying to
    buff his image among geeks. Rep. Bob Barr (R-Georgia) may be on a
    campaign to ban abortion and indict Democrats, but at least he's
    usually a reliable ally when limiting government surveillance; he
    opposes the measure. The bill would allow police to obtain records on
    you from third parties (think ISP, telephone company) without a search
    warrant. It's designed to be used against violent criminals, but it
    sets a dangerous precedent. See letters below.

Letters from Barr opposing and McCollum supporting:
http://www.cluebot.com/article.pl?sid=00/10/20/2341243&mode=nested