[Infowarrior] - Feds Appeal State Secrets Decision

[Richard Forno]

Monday, 31 July 2006
Feds Appeal State Secrets Decision

nsa lawsuit textThe federal government asked an appeals court Wednesday to
immediately hold a hearing on a lower court decision that allows an
anti-eavesdropping lawsuit against AT&T to proceed, despite the government's
arguments that the lawsuit would harm the national defense.

In the request filed with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, government
lawyers argued that last week's landmark decision by Federal District Court
Judge Vaughn Walker --a Republican appointee --usurped the executive
branch's powers to wage war and keep the country safe.

Walker refused to toss the Electronic Frontier Foundation lawsuit, saying
that the existence of the program was no longer a secret since the
Administration confirmed news reports that it was spying on some Americans'
overseas communications without a warrant.

That decision was one of the few times that a judge has not bowed down to
the invocation of the state secrets privilege by the executive branch.

While the privilege has a long history, the Bush Administration has used the
legal equivalent of a "neutron bomb" widely to prevent information about
secret CIA prisons, eavesdropping and FBI translation mistakes from being
revealed in open court.

Realizing that his decision would be controversial, Walker granted the
government the right to appeal the non-dismissal immediately.

The government reiterated to the Ninth Circuit that it believed any
information about the program would harm national security.

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