Contact: Mark Stanley, 202.681.7582
Email: press@demandprogress.org
WASHINGTON — Today, over 30 organizations from across the political spectrum sent a letter to James Clapper, Director of National Intelligence, and Admiral Michael Rogers, Director of the National Security Agency, urging them to halt secretly proposed changes to Executive Order 12333 that would share raw data collected by the NSA with law enforcement agencies.
The letter follows recent reports by The New York Times that the White House and Director of National Intelligence are in the process of establishing procedures to expand intra-governmental access to raw data gathered by the NSA, including communications to, from, and about U.S. persons.
The following can be attributed to Daniel Schuman, Policy Director for Demand Progress, who co-authored the letter:
"The Obama administration's secret plan to share raw information gathered by the NSA for national security purposes with law enforcement undermines Americans' privacy and the government's claims to transparency. The president should roll back the proposal to expand Executive Order 12333, especially as Congress and the American people have made it crystal clear they wish to limit mass surveillance, not expand its use.”
The full letter can be viewed here: https://s3.amazonaws.com/new.demandprogress.org/letters/Coalition_Letter_DNI_NSA_EO_12333_data_sharing.pdf
###