House Committee Passes Watered-Down NSA Reform Bill

Google Cheered Bill as 'Modernizing Surveillance'

The House Judiciary Committee today made a token move toward NSA reform with the 25-2 passing of the USA Freedom Act, an even more watered-down version of Sen. Leahy’s (D – VT) reform bill from last year, which was criticized for not doing much to start with.

Though some are presenting the passage as a dramatic blow to the surveillance state, most analysts seem to agree that the bill as ultimately passed is little more than a “diversion” passed to placate privacy groups.

One thing it does do is dramatically expand immunity to private tech companies participating in NSA surveillance schemes, a fact that was no doubt a big factor in Google cheering it for “modernizing surveillance” in the US.

Modernizing, but not stopping. Despite being designed as a reform bill, the bill is not expected to significantly alter the NSA surveillance program, or to offer significant protections to Americans swept up in it.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.