On Monday, Salon published an article by Tom Watson which argued that liberals shouldn't align with libertarians over the fight to roll back NSA surveillance. At issue is the Stop Watching Us rally, of which Campaign for Liberty is a proud coalition sponsor. The rally is bringing together a wide range of groups from all over the ideological spectrum in pursuit of the same goal: transparency and accountability from the NSA's spying program. From the article:
This is a vital cause, and I agree with it.
Yet I cannot support this coalition or the rally. It is fatally compromised by the prominent leadership and participation of the Libertarian Party and other libertarian student groups; their hard-core ideology stands in direct opposition to almost everything I believe in as a social democrat.
Watson continues:
For those whose feet still touch the ground, the path to NSA reform so clearly lies inside the Democrats’ big tent – and runs through its liberal wing.
Not sure which Democratic leaders Watson hopes to fight back against the NSA's overreach. Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Dianne Feinstein? She argued for the call record program to continue just the other day. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid? He thinks we should all just "calm down" about the NSA. Granted, this love of the NSA surveillance program appears on both sides of the aisle, which is all the more reason to align with groups that may disagree on tax policy, but believe the NSA should not be spying on innocent Americans. With so much cheerleading in Congress for this controversial program, NSA opponents need all the support we can get.
As with our other top legislative priorites, including Audit the Fed, Campaign for Liberty is committed to working with Members of Congress from either Party who want to curtail the NSA's vast spying apparatus. Sign our Stop Spying Petition HERE
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PDFTags: Campaign for Liberty, NSA, Harry Reid, civil liberties, surveillance