Secrecy and Privacy Should be a Two Way Street

Nowhere in the US constitution is the federal government granted the right to privacy but there is the fourth amendment against unreasonable search and seizure. One argument that some use when the government over reaches is "If you haven't done anything wrong you have nothing to hide." Those who believe that should extent that same logic to the government and all federal documents should be made public immediately. Not doing so is the government admitting it has taken illegal actions it has to hide.

Of course this is unreasonable domestically there are presidential movements, law enforcement investigations, weapon designs, and other sensitive topics that are sensitive and need to be protected. Internationally there are diplomatic exchanges the would be best kept secret. What is needed is the realization that individuals do, say, and go places with a degree of privacy. The National Security Agency (NSA) getting every telephone call record for the cell carriers steps well beyond reasonable search and seizure. Getting records for a set of towers or a list of cell numbers with a public court order would be reasonable. The United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA) is not a public court. I'm not sure anything done in that court is constitutional since none of it is public record not even the judges but that is not the topic of this post. There is a reasonable expectation that your movements and who you converse with is private. Unfettered access to cell phone records give the government both. 

If the government is allow free and unfettered access to this information then they have no place to complain or prosecute anyone for leaking secret documents for the first amendment protects the press and freedom of speech which the person leaking information is exercising. I have already granted that the government needs to keep secrets but this doesn't extend to covering up it violating the law or the constitution. Both are examples where someone leaking information is doing the citizens of the US a service. That should be the first determination in any case accusing someone violating the Espionage Act of 1917 or other federal secrecy statutes. If the information is exposing the government violating the law or the constitution then the prosecution should not continue. 

If there is truly a reason for this grand data acquisition by the NSA a closed hearing with a reasonable organization representing the privacy right of the US citizens presenting opposing arguments should be held. If this needs to be secret and the records sequestered for a time so be it. In the FISA court no one was arguing against the NSA nor to my knowledge was specific evidence of the need for such wide data collection presented. 

It is a matter of fact that both the government and law abiding citizen have information they consider private and do not wish exposed. There are rules and laws that should be followed. In the case of the cell phone records given to the NSA they have been broken.
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