Rush Votes Against FISA Reauthorization Due to Grave Civil Liberty Concerns

WASHINGTON — Today, U.S. Representative Bobby L. Rush (D-Ill.) voted NO on H.R. 6172, the USA FREEDOM Reauthorization Act of 2020, due to lack of meaningful reform to the underlying bill and serious concerns for the civil liberties of his constituents and Americans at large.

“Prior to serving as a Member of Congress, I was the subject of a sophisticated and sinister surveillance program called COINTELPRO (COunter INTELligence PROgram), which was designed to disrupt the actions of political activists and would ultimately lead to the death of my dear friends Fred Hampton and Mark Clarke.  The same people who killed Fred and Mark would also attempt to take my life the very next day

“As it stands, this so-called ‘FREEDOM’ Act has little to do with its namesake and amounts to nothing more than a high-tech COINTELPRO.  I have zero confidence that the well-intentioned reforms to FISA and Section 215 sought by my colleagues and outlined in this bill will go far enough to protect the civil liberties of my constituents nor any Americans.”