Issue Position: National Security Agency

Issue Position

The 4th amendment states:

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Even with this clear cut right set forth in the Bill of Rights by our forefathers as the supreme law of the land, our federal government is blatantly disregarding the 4th amendment and ransacking the data and internet communications of nearly every American. https://www.eff.org/nsa-spying/timeline

Just a few weeks ago on January 10th, 2014, a Missouri state Senate committee approved a proposed state constitutional amendment that would protect private data and make NSA spying in Missouri illegal. Missouri Senator Rob Schaaf introduced Senate Joint Resolution 27 (SJR27) and now that it has passed committee it heads to the full Senate for debate and an eventual vote.

The text of SJR27 is short and concise, replacing the "privacy rights" section in the state constitution with the following language adding electronic communications to the objects protected from search or seizure without a warrant making it clear to the federal government that they are not to spy on Missourians data.

"That the people shall be secure in their persons, papers, homes [and], effects, and electronic communications and data, from unreasonable searches and seizures; and no warrant to search any place, or seize any person or thing, or access electronic data or communication, shall issue without describing the place to be searched, or the person or thing to be seized, or the data or communication to be accessed, as nearly as may be; nor without probable cause, supported by written oath or affirmation."

http://www.senate.mo.gov/14info/pdf-bill/intro/SJR27.pdf

I will support this resolution and others like it which assert and protect the 4th Amendment rights of my constituents.

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