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“EVENTS OF THE DAY” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H3240-H3243 on June 6, 2013.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
EVENTS OF THE DAY
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of January 3, 2013, the Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gohmert) for 30 minutes.
Mr. GOHMERT. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Today is a very important day, the day of the anniversary of the invasion on D-day during World War II. There is also another important aspect about today, because we learned about the administration's collecting of massive information, private information, about every Verizon customer's phone numbers, all the calls they made, outside the country and within the country. Staggering. It makes one think, well, gee, if this administration was gathering information and got a court order, a secret court order, to get all this information from Verizon, then most likely they did from the other carriers as well. And as a Verizon representative has pointed out, look, when we get a court order demanding that we turn over information, then we have to turn it over. And that is what we do in a country where we believe in the rule of law, we are supposed to follow the law.
But what is staggering for those of us who have debated over the FISA courts, where you have a real, legitimate, nominated and confirmed Federal judge, presides over information that is considered so secret that the disclosure of even the request for information would create dangers to national security. We've debated that in the Judiciary Committee. That included my friend, Ms. Jackson Lee. We've had these debates over these issues.
I was talking with my friend with whom I often disagree in Judiciary, a Congressman from New York, Jerry Nadler, and actually I recall him indicating during debates that if we didn't rein in the power of the Federal Government, these were the types of things that could happen. And I have to admit today that for any predictions or concern on the part of Jerry Nadler that if we gave the power under article 215 or section 215--basically, the PATRIOT Act, the FISA courts--that it could and would be abused, Mr. Nadler was right. We are now seeing affirmation of that.
But I do think it is important that we understand what we're talking about with regard to these phone records, and as a preface I think it's important to look at the order from the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, Washington, D.C. It's entitled, Mr. Speaker, In Re Application of the Federal Bureau of Investigation for an Order Requiring the Production of Tangible Things from Verizon Business Network Services, Inc. on behalf of MCI Communication Services, Inc. d/b/a Verizon Business Services. It cites for its authority in this the law at volume 50 of the United States Code, section 1861.
In this order that is granting the request of this Justice Department under this Attorney General, who is under fire for other issues, it says, ``The court having found that the application of the Federal Bureau of Investigation''--which is under the auspices of the Attorney General, the Justice Department--``for an order requiring the production of tangible things from Verizon Business,'' et cetera, the court finds that it satisfies the requirements of 50 U.S.C., section 1861.
It goes on to say that accordingly, these things are ordered, and it orders, and I'm quoting now:
An electronic copy of the following tangible things: all call detail records or ``telephony metadata'' created by Verizon for communications (i) between the United States and abroad; or (ii) wholly within the United States, including local telephone calls.
Further down, it says:
Telephony metadata includes comprehensive communications routing information, including but not limited to session identifying information (e.g., originating and terminating telephone number, International Mobile Subscriber Identity
(IMSI) number, International Mobile station Equipment Identity (IMEI) number), trunk identifier, telephone calling card numbers, and time and duration of call. Telephony metadata does not include the substantive content of any communication, as defined by 18 U.S.C., section 2510(8), or the name, address, or financial information of a subscriber or customer.
Now, this comes on the heels of information about just how invasive this administration had gotten when they went after the records of the Associated Press, the phone information of many, many phone numbers, and some of them coming from right up here in the area where the reporters use. This is in the United States Capitol. Many times these phones up here are used by reporters to call Members of Congress, who have another constitutional privilege under the Constitution that provides privilege for the information that is provided for or to a Member of Congress. It's not unlimited. But that's on top of the freedom of the press that's also granted in the Second Amendment.
It is amazing when our Attorney General said, gee, in essence, this was like the most egregious or one of the most egregious national security leaks I had ever heard about. It was so serious, we had to go after this material, and then we find out there were only a handful of people in the entire administration who knew the information that got leaked. And instead of just going without a warrant--they don't need a warrant to get their own administration phone call data. They didn't even need a court for that. It's their data. They could have gone to the handful of individuals that knew the information that got leaked and checked their phone logs to see who they called. But instead of doing that, they decide to go on a fishing expedition for all of this telephone information about the Associated Press.
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They apparently wanted to know who the AP talks to, what they do, what they know, who they know. Let's get all of this information.
They didn't need that for their pursuit of the leaker. They didn't need it at all. They could have gone straight to their own sources and got what they needed from there; and then once they have a subject within the AP, if anyone, then they could go for that information.
And as a former judge, if somebody came and said we have found the source of the leak, here's one of the five-or-so people that knew the information, he called this reporter at this number, and so we have probable cause to believe that the leak was made to this reporter, and put other information in there that raises it to the level of probable cause to allow the judge to let them take a look at that one reporter's single phone logs.
But, no, they didn't do that. They went on an incredibly vast and very chilling fishing expedition.
And then we have the Attorney General testify before our Judiciary Committee, and I know my friends mentioned this before I got up, my friends on the other side of the aisle. They were talking about how he is such a great Attorney General, in essence, and certainly never perjured himself.
But I heard what he said. I've heard it replayed over and over; and when he says he wasn't aware of, he had not heard of, he never participated in--he didn't think it was a good idea was the basics of what he said--of ever prosecuting a reporter.
And then within a week or so we find out, actually, he approved of an affidavit that went before a judge with the request for a warrant from the court against James Rosen with Fox News.
Now, I've had people wake me up at all hours of the day and night. I've had people call when I was awakened at 2 or 3 in the morning and say, Judge, we need to come by your house. This is really serious. And they'd come by; and if they had enough data in their affidavits that established probable cause, then I would grant a limited warrant.
But there were times I would get upset with a law officer that bothered me with an affidavit and a request that clearly didn't have probable cause. We aren't going to grant that. If you're not sure if you have probable cause, talk to the DA's office, run it by them before you bring something in that clearly does not establish probable cause.
Fortunately, the law officers were so good that we normally dealt with that normally that was not a problem, but sometimes it was. And any responsible judge takes that very seriously.
And sometimes you would get a request for a warrant for information; and you go, okay, you've established probable cause in your affidavit, but your request is so global and broad, or so ambiguous, I can't sign the order you've prepared. Sometimes I would interlineate in the order and make it more specific. Sometimes they would know that I was going to be restrictive, and they would leave blanks for that.
But then to find out that the court granted this administration's demand, with an affidavit supporting it, under oath, that they needed all the records that Verizon had on phone calls inside the United States and to places outside the United States, and the judge just grants it.
And now, following on the heels of learning that the IRS targeted political enemies, political opponents, people in Tea Parties, people that were very pro-Israel, other groups, a group that was very pro-
marriage between a man and a woman, like has been the tradition in this country for the entire history of the country, until now, when it's come into question, and some think that nature totally failed when it created, biologically, a mating between a man and a woman, that it screwed up, it should have been a man and a man.
Well, that's a difference of opinion. But under this administration, they felt like it was worth going after and preventing a group like National Organization for Marriage from stepping up and standing on the traditional marriage and being able to deliver that message.
Now, it didn't prevent them from quickly granting legal status to groups that felt otherwise, or if somebody was related to somebody in the administration. We've seen those examples.
But, gee, they also knew within the IRS that if they granted or denied a request, well, a denial could be immediately appealed. And so in order to prevent justice from being done, prevent people from having the opportunity to politically express themselves as a group, they just sat on them, 1, 2, 3 years, to prevent them from being able to go public as a group.
I was shocked that a reporter asked the question, well, you groups, you were coming begging to the IRS. You're the ones that asked for legal status. And I'm sure this is a very fine reporter, but it just showed the ignorance--and there's nothing wrong. We're all ignorant of different areas--but showed the ignorance of where we have gotten to in this country where the Internal Revenue Code is so oppressive, if you, as an individual go out and say look, I don't have much money, I'm a working man, I'm just barely getting by. You're a working woman, you're just barely getting by, but if we pool our money, we might be able to express ourselves politically, maybe buy a commercial, or maybe send out flyers, or maybe buy a billboard, but something. If we pool together, maybe we can have an impact in politics on an issue like marriage.
And if you pool your money like that, and you don't have permission from the IRS, then they're going to come after you because you've got to have a legal status to do things like that now in America.
And it is further indication as to why this infernal Internal Revenue Code and the incredibly huge number of regulations that were never passed by any elected representative, they're just generated day after day after day by some bureaucrat somewhere, I used to say in a cubicle, but apparently we find out they've got some pretty luxurious offices and they spend millions on their conferences they go to.
Apparently they haven't spent enough on learning to line dance because I wasn't very impressed with their line dancing, but that's not part of their job, so maybe they need to get into a different area or a different profession.
But they have to obtain legal status if they're going to do anything politically, or the IRS can come after them for not doing so. So we have forced groups into getting government approval before they can ever express themselves politically. It's astounding.
And when you find out this administration has used so many aspects of its power to chill or prevent political opposition to their positions, to their re-election, then it really gets scary when you find out they're just out there wanting everybody's information on everybody they called in the country and out of the country.
And we had some pretty significant debates in Judiciary under FISA and under the PATRIOT Act; and we were assured, no, the law makes very clear you can only get information from an American citizen if they're in a foreign country and the foreign law allows that and they call a known or suspected terrorist.
But under these laws, we can't just go get information about an American citizen's personal records. We can't do that without probable cause they've committed a crime.
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But under these incredible powers of the PATRIOT Act and the ability to go to the FISA court, as they did here, and get a secret order, we were told and we debated and some felt like even if an American citizen is in a foreign country, we don't think you ought to be able to get that American citizen's phone data, even if you just pull it out of the air. We don't think you should be able to get that.
So there was debate about those things. Well, what if they're calling a known terrorist, and we've got American intelligence agencies gathering in a foreign country and we can get that without a warrant? It's out there floating around in the air. We can get that. And this was debated--Yeah, but they're an American citizen. You ought to leave them alone. And some of us felt if they're an American citizen in a foreign country and our intelligence agencies can get intelligence data without violating the foreign law, then you need to know as an American citizen when you go into a foreign country, you may have our own intelligence agencies getting information about your telephone calls as long as they're not violating the law of the country they're in. And that's the way I felt.
But we were always assured that unless there was probable cause to believe an American citizen was calling a known or suspected terrorist or a hostile foreign government, that kind of thing, then no, we don't go after American citizens' information. And especially not if there's a call from an American citizen to another American citizen. That's none of our business, unless there's probable cause to believe a crime is being committed. Then we find out they have actually found a judge that signed off on this thing, and they got all this information.
Now I know there's some--even Republicans--who would say, Gee, I don't care if the government has my phone number. They've gotten it so they can go after terrorists. Well, unless you're a terrorist, the American government has no business monitoring what all you're doing and who you're calling, especially this administration, with all the abuses we've already seen. It's wrong. It should not be occurring. But they've done so.
There was a tweet today by Ace of Spades. The tweet was: We've all got an Obama phone now. Well, apparently we do. Because this administration is following every call being made by every phone in America--at least the ones on Verizon. So that leads you to believe they've probably gotten it from other information, too.
And I do appreciate my colleagues' on the other side concern that enough good things about ObamaCare are not coming out because some of us are concerned about the Attorney General's perjury. And I would submit, humbly, that a major reason not enough good things are coming out about ObamaCare is because there are not a bunch of good things coming out. People are losing their insurance. They're getting in trouble. And that is a big problem.
Mr. Speaker, how much time do I have remaining?
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Texas has approximately 7 minutes remaining.
Mr. GOHMERT. Thank you.
This is the anniversary of D-Day. So many Americans died on the beaches at Normandy. So many free countries gave the last full measure of devotion there on those beaches. It wasn't Normandy but rather another beach where one of my constituents, who has since passed away, said that when they were landing at Anzio, they were doing it so early in the morning, there was no sunlight. But the Axis powers had such powerful lights that you could read a book in their landing craft. And they'd been taught that when the landing ramp went down when they got to shore, they were to all run out at the same time. And as they got closer, they heard the machine gun bullets going back and forth across the front of the ramp. He said, We were all so scared. We know when that ramp went down, we were all going to die.
And one of the guys--Paul Stanley recalled his name, I do not--but he exemplified the spirit of America. He finally looked around and said, Guys, we all know if we run out of this landing craft the way we've been trained, we're all dead. So here's what we're going to do. I'm going to go first. Everybody is going to put your weapon in your right hand and grab the belt of the man in front of you and we're going to run out single file. Some of us won't make it. But that way some of you have a chance.
Paul Stanley said he was third. The two in front of him were killed and everybody else made it. That's the spirit of America that landed on the beaches of Normandy to take on the Axis powers who sought to take freedom from free people.
It was on this day in 1944 that Franklin Roosevelt said this prayer on national radio. Today, he would probably be excoriated because of some of the terminology.
He said:
My fellow Americans, last night, when I spoke with you about the fall of Rome, I knew at that moment that troops of the United States and our allies were crossing the Channel in another and greater operation. It has come to pass with success thus far. And so, in this poignant hour, I ask you to join with me in prayer.
Almighty God, our sons, pride of our Nation, this day have set upon a mighty endeavor, a struggle to preserve our Republic, our religion, and our civilization, and to set free a suffering humanity. Lead them straight and true; give strength to their arms, stoutness to their hearts, steadfastness in their faith.
They will need Thy blessings. Their road will be long and hard. For the enemy is strong. He may hurl back our forces. Success may not come with rushing speed, but we shall return again and again, and we know that by Thy grace, and by the righteousness of our cause, our sons will triumph. They will be sore tried, by night and day, without rest until the victory is won. The darkness will be rent by noise and flame. Men's souls will be shaken even with the violences of war.
For these men are lately drawn from the ways of peace. They fight not just for the lust of conquest. They fight to end conquest. They fight to liberate. They fight to let justice arise, and tolerance and good will among all Thy people. They yearn but for the end of battle, for their return to the haven of home. Some will never return. Embrace these, Father, and receive them, Thy heroic servants, into Thy kingdom.
And for us at home--fathers, mothers, children, wives, sisters, and brothers of brave men overseas--whose thoughts and prayers are ever with them, help us, almighty God, to rededicate ourselves in renewed faith in Thee in this great hour of great sacrifice.
Many people have urged that I call the Nation into a single day of special prayer. But because the road is long and the desire is great, I ask that our people devote themselves in a continuance of prayer. As we rise to each new day, and again when each day is spent, let words of prayer be on our lips, invoking Thy help in our efforts. Give us strength, too--strength in our daily tasks, to redouble the contributions we make in the physical and the material support of our Armed Forces. And let our hearts be stout, to wait out the long travail; to bear sorrows that may come, to impart our courage unto our sons wheresoever they may be.
And, O Lord, give us faith. Give us faith in Thee, faith in our sons, faith in each other, faith in our united crusade. Let not the keenness of our spirit ever be dulled. Let not the impacts of temporary events, of temporal matters of but fleeting moment, let not these deter us in our unconquerable purpose.
With Thy blessing, we shall prevail over the unholy forces of our enemy. Help us to conquer the apostles of greed and racial arrogances. Lead us to the saving of our country, and with our sister nations into a world unity that will spell a sure peace, a peace invulnerable to schemings of unworthy men. And a peace that will let all men live in freedom, reaping the just rewards of their honest toil.
Thy will be done, Almighty God. Amen.
Franklin Roosevelt, on this day in 1944.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
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