The United States Congress should restrict the National Security Agency’s ability to collect “bulk data” without a warrant

Reform CP Answers

2AC No Solvency

Freedom Act/reforms don’t solve- must be more sweeping or just lets the NSA do whatever- doesn’t solve international collection at all

Froomkin ’15 [DAN FROOMKIN, Washington Post correspondent, reporter, columnist, and editor with a focus on coverage of U.S. politics and media, WHY THE USA FREEDOM ACT IS BOTH DESPERATELY IMPORTANT AND LAUGHABLY PATHETIC, May 5, 2015]

Yes, the bill would end the bulk collection of metadata from domestic phone companies — the single most shocking revelation from the Snowden archives, and arguably the most unprecedented for the NSA, by virtue of its overt focus on monitoring domestic communication. But:

The legislation would still leave an expansive surveillance apparatus capable of tracking vast quantities of data. Some of the most sweeping programs disclosed by Mr. Snowden, particularly those focused on international communications, would remain unaffected. The N.S.A. could continue efforts to break private encryption systems, and information about Americans could still be swept up if originating overseas.

Tapping data lines that go in and out of the U.S., grabbing personal information without a warrant from major content providers like Facebook and Yahoo — no worries.

Sweeping up all non-U.S. content possible — sometimes an entire country’sphone calls at a time. Breaking encryption. Installing malware. Hacking Sim cards. Tracking cellphones. No problem.

Spying on porn habits. Sharing raw intelligence on Americans with Israel. It happens.

Installing shunts on the fiber optic cables that are the backbone of the Internet. Breaking into cell networks. Tapping private links between data centers. S’alright.

Allowing secret laws developed on the fly by a rubber-stamp secret court that the Intelligence Community still doesn’t level with. Spy chiefs who want to “collect it all.” Cost of doing business.

Extraordinary new abilities — like automated transcription of phone calls — that Congress never anticipated, may not even know about, and certainly never establish rules for. Love it or leave it, baby.

The USA Freedom Act is like a surgeon talking about taking a small tumor off of a much larger one. Would you recommend against such surgery, if that was the only one the surgeon was even willing to contemplate?

That’s the bind some pivotal privacy groups find themselves in. Access, theCenter for Democracy and Technology, Human Rights Watch and theElectronic Frontier Foundation are among those who say yes, it’s better than nothing. Demand Progress and the ACLU say it’s worse.

Glenn Greenwald noted a year ago, when a similar bill was in play, that there was “a real question about whether the defeat of this bill is good, bad, or irrelevant.”

Freedom Act doesn’t go far enough- causes backlash

Brody ’14 [Rachel Brody, US News, May 22, 2014, Is the NSA Reform Bill a Step Forward?, http://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2014/05/22/will-nsa-bulk-data-surveillance-be-limited-by-the-usa-freedom-act]

The House voted 303-121 on Thursday to pass a bill intended to limit bulk data collection by the National Security Agency, but some critics say its provisions don’t go far enough. While the USA Freedom Act initially enjoyed bipartisan support, a number of would-be proponents turned their backs on the bill after the House Rules committee changed key components on Wednesday before it reached the floor for a vote.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., who originally supported the bill, voted against it and believes it does not include enough checks on the NSA. “Regrettably, we have learned that if we leave any ambiguity in the law, the intelligence agency will run a truck through that ambiguity,” she said.

Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie, a Republican, joined Lofgren in voting no on the final bill. In a Facebookpost, Massie wrote, “Under the finalized floor version of the USA Freedom Act, it would be completely legal for the NSA to request all records for an area code, zip code, or even all of the emails for accounts that start with the letter ‘A,’ all without a warrant.”

Critics of the bill point to new language that could be interpreted broadly and to the NSA’s advantage. In the new bill, language specifying what data the NSA may collect was amended to include the terms “address” and “device,” which many see as a slippery slope — or even a wide open door — to exactly what the bill supposedly prevents: bulk data collection. A group of tech giants, including Google, Microsoft, Facebook and Twitter, strongly oppose the new draft and withdrew their support of the final bill, saying the amended language created “an unacceptable loophole that could enable the bulk collection of internet users’ data.”

The Freedom Act is horrific- it’s just a cover to save face

COD ’15 [Camonduty, April 23, 2015, The Patriot Act is Being Insidiously Replaced with the USA Freedom Act, http://camonduty.com/the-patriot-act-is-being-insidiously-replaced-with-the-usa-freedom-act/]

The Patriot Act has been one of the most controversial pieces of legislation ever passed, laws making it legal for the U.S. Government to ruthlessly spy on American citizens without their knowledge, and without just cause.

As of June 1, 2015 the privacy rights given to all American citizens through the Constitution will be renewed when section 215 of the Patriot Act expires, but not if Congress has anything to say about it.

U.S. Representatives have found an insidious way to sneak the devastation legislation back into the Senate and it is called The USA Freedom Act. Sounds like an all-American bill being written on our behalf, right? No, it is simply the same frightening and manipulative tactics used by law makers in order to gain the legal ability to spy and collect data on each and every American citizen.

The surveillance efforts being put forth by agencies such as the NSA. FBI, and CIA are increasingly advanced and are being used for more and more concerning investigations into the lives of regular Americans. As Christian Broda is aware, the leaks famously released by anti-hero Edward Snowden revealed the dangers of legislation found in the Patriot Act.

The USA Freedom Act is being used to take the place of soon-to-be expiring legislation of The Patriot Act, a bill used to crush our constitutional rights into oblivion, even though you would never know that by listening to our representatives.

2AC AT Ends Bulk Collection

Reform doesn’t strip authority for bulk collection- it renews it

Diamond and Barret ’15 [Jeremy Diamond and Ted Barrett, CNN, June 1, 2015, NSA must end bulk data collection even as Senate moves ahead on bill, http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/31/politics/patriot-act-senate-showdown-nsa/]

"The government after this bill passes will no longer collect your phone records," Paul said.

Counterterrorism officials will lose not just the bulk data collection program but also the ability to obtain roving wiretaps to listen in on potential terror suspects, even if they change phones.

Law enforcement officials, though, will be allowed to continue to use roving wiretaps and to collect pinpointed data telecommunications companies and other businesses for ongoing investigations.

Those authorities will likely be restored as early as Wednesday when Republican leadership aides expect a final vote on the compromise bill -- the USA Freedom Act -- which overwhelmingly passed the House two weeks earlier.

2AC Changes to Freedom Act Link to Politics

Changing the bill would reopen the debate and link to politics- it’s controversial

Diamond and Barret ’15 [Jeremy Diamond and Ted Barrett, CNN, June 1, 2015, NSA must end bulk data collection even as Senate moves ahead on bill, http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/31/politics/patriot-act-senate-showdown-nsa/]

House Speaker John Boehner on Sunday urged his Senate counterparts to move forward on that House-passed bill, which renews three of the Patriot Act provisions expiring at midnight and would overhaul the controversial bulk telephone collection program, instead requiring a specific, targeted warrant to obtain any call records from telecommunications companies.¶ If there are any changes to the Freedom Act it would have to go back to the House of Representatives for consideration.¶ Though McConnell's preference was to renew the Patriot Act as is, he realized that passing a House-passed compromise measure -- the USA Freedom Act -- would be the only option to preserve the expiring Patriot Act provisions.¶ "It's not ideal but, along with votes on some modest amendments that attempt to ensure the program can actually work as promised, it's now the only realistic way forward," McConnell said Sunday.¶

2AC Freedom Act Links to Politics

Freedom Act still turns into a political fight

Diamond and Barret ’15 [Jeremy Diamond and Ted Barrett, CNN, June 1, 2015, NSA must end bulk data collection even as Senate moves ahead on bill, http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/31/politics/patriot-act-senate-showdown-nsa/]

During his weekly radio address Saturday, Obama had urged the Senate to move forward and knocked "a small group of senators" who he said are "standing in the way."

"And unfortunately, some folks are trying to use this debate to score political points. But this shouldn't and can't be about politics. This is a matter of national security," the President said.

2AC Links to Cybersecurity

CP links

Bennett ’15 [Cory Bennett, 05/31/15, Surveillance reform could tee up cyber bill, The Hill, http://thehill.com/policy/cybersecurity/243498-surveillance-reform-could-tee-up-cyber-bill]

Most reformers are backing the House-passed USA Freedom Act, which would reign in the NSA’s more controversial surveillance programs.

If senators can get the USA Freedom Act passed before midnight Sunday — it’s three votes shy of reaching the 60-vote threshold needed to overcome a filibuster — CISA might be teed up next.

“Cyber info sharing seems like the next most likely issue to come up,” said Norma Krayem, a lobbyist with Squire Patton Boggs who co-chairs the firm’s cybersecurity industry group.

Getting the USA Freedom Act through Congress could win over some additional votes for CISA.

“If something can pass on surveillance does that mean it helps in terms of getting enough votes to pass information sharing? Yes, I think so,” Martino said.