On Friday, a federal appeals court overturned a lower-court judge’s order to stop the National Security Agency (NSA) mass gathering of phone records and metadata.
This is, no doubt, just the latest in the government’s embattled spying program. Congress has already passed legislation that will end the government’s bulk data collection. The new system will establish that the telecom companies will retain data and the government will be able to search the records held by the private company with a court order.
The decision the appeals court overturned was entered by District Court Judge Richard Leon in December 2013. Judge Leon found that the mass collection of metadata violated Constitutional privacy protections. The programs Judge Leon took issue with came into being following the attacks on September 11, 2001.
The case the appeals court decided on was filed by Larry Klayman after Edward Snowden revealed the breadth of the government’s domestic spying efforts. Mr. Klayman was not happy with the court’s decision.
“This is why Donald Trump is so popular right now, because every branch of government–including the judiciary which is supposed to protect us from the tyranny of the government–has broken down,” Klayman said.
While Klayman is scheduled for a new hearing in his case next week, he has stated that he is confident his side will prevail in the end.
