I was disappointed to read that Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Skamania, voted in favor of extending Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which was set to expire at the end of 2023. In doing so, Perez voted to allow the FBI, NSA, CIA and other government agencies to surveil private telephone calls, emails and text messages of United States citizens without a warrant.
Oregon’s senior U.S. senator, Ron Wyden, co-sponsored the Government Surveillance Reform Act of 2023, which would require that government agencies obtain a warrant before searching data obtained under Section 702, strengthen judicial oversight of surveillance, and prohibit the government from simply purchasing the information from private parties like banks and telecommunication firms.
Perez lacks the wisdom to follow Wyden’s leadership and support legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives that would protect the privacy rights of her constituents in the 3rd District rather than currying favor with the Biden administration. Fortunately, Joe Kent understands the dangers of the surveillance state and opposes Section 702.
