ACLU suing the NSA over FISA law

By GottaLaff

UPDATE: Want to take action? Go here to do this:

Add Your Name to the ACLU's Newspaper Ad.
We want Congress to stand up for our freedom, but they keep caving in to fear mongering! Help the ACLU spell it out for them.
he ACLU is preparing to challenge the unconstitutional FISA Amendments Act in court and protect your right to privacy.

In addition, the ACLU will be taking out a full-page ad in a major national newspaper announcing the lawsuit and expressing outrage at this abandonment of our Constitutional principles. Their goal is to run an ad containing the names of tens of thousands of Americans who believe in the Constitution and want Congress to hear our message loud and clear: next time, stand up for our rights.

There has never been a more important moment to demonstrate to our leaders that we believe in freedom – not fear.

Liveblogging: Thom Hartmann interviewing Director of the Washington Legislative office of the ACLU Caroline Fredrickson:

Caroline: The ACLU is suing the government. The bill is the same bill, with cosmetic adjustments. We're filing a lawsuit this afternoon.

We're suing the NSA, the agency that implements. The NSA and CIA weren't supposed to be into domestic surveillance, but it's become more muddled over the past few years, and now they're involved... including the Defense Department... infiltrating peace groups, etc. It's hard to separate the agencies now.

Thom: The harms, the assaults to the Constitution (so many, Thom listed them, like the repeal of habeas corpus)... ?

Caroline: It will be hard to re-mediate these things. No matter who is president, it will take a lot to turn these things around. Unless we raise our voices very, very loud, we won't be able to fix this mess.

Thom: I am voting for Obama, no question, but we should never blindly follow the Democratic party, we need to speak out. At least Obama put his position on his website and allows for discussion of it, vs. John McCain.