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Attorney General Must Stop Stonewalling Congress on NSA Spying, ACLU Says; Lawmakers and the Public Deserve Disclosure on Warrantless Program (04/06/2006)
WASHINGTON - As Attorney General Alberto Gonzales appeared before the House Judiciary Committee for an oversight hearing, the American Civil Liberties Union today urged the Bush administration to stop stonewalling efforts by lawmakers to fully investigate the warrantless surveillance of Americans by the National Security Agency, as authorized by President Bush.

ACLU Sends Monitor to Guantánamo Military Tribunals; Blog Dispatches to be Posted on ACLU.Org (04/04/2006)
NEW YORK - The American Civil Liberties Union will be observing the military tribunals that resume this week at the Guantánamo Bay navy base. The Pentagon is moving forward with the hearings even though the legitimacy of the hearings is currently under review by the U.S. Supreme Court.

FBI Spied on Denver Bookstore and Anti-War Protesters, New Documents Reveal (03/28/2006)
DENVER -- As part of a “domestic terrorism” investigation, the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force conducted surveillance of a Denver bookstore on February 15, 2003 and monitored 40 people who gathered there to carpool to an anti-war demonstration in Colorado Springs later that day, according to an FBI report released today by the American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado.

ACLU Condemns Government Censorship at the Borders, Says Freedom of Speech and Association Must Be Protected (03/28/2006)
WASHINGTON- The American Civil Liberties Union today told a House panel that a section of the Patriot Act is being misused to exclude people from the U.S. based on their political beliefs constitutes "censorship at the borders" and infringes on Americans' freedom of speech and association.

Senate Judiciary Committee Continues Hearings into Illegal NSA Spying Program, ACLU Urges Lawmakers to Get Facts Before Acting (03/28/2006)
WASHINGTON - As the Senate Judiciary Committee met today to hold its third hearing into the warrantless surveillance of Americans by the National Security Agency (NSA) authorized by President Bush, the American Civil Liberties Union urged lawmakers to hold a fair and comprehensive investigation of the facts about the program before considering any legislation regarding the illegal operation.

Government Complies with Court Order to Release Abu Ghraib Abuse Images; ACLU Vows to Hold Top Officials Accountable (03/28/2006)
NEW YORK -- The American Civil Liberties Union today announced that the Department of Defense has withdrawn its appeal of a district court order compelling it to turn over images depicting detainee abuse by U.S. forces at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. The Defense Department will identify which public images come from the contested trove and release any additional images in its possession.

ACLU Rebukes Department of Justice Continued Stonewalling on Wiretapping Questions, Says Accountability and Transparency Needed (03/24/2006)
WASHINGTON -- The American Civil Liberties Union today condemned the continued refusal of the Justice Department to answer basic questions about the National Security Agency’s warrantless program to wiretap Americans. The Department today sent over its answers to questions about the illegal program from the majority and minority members of the House Judiciary Committee.

NYCLU Asks Court of Appeals to Open Secret Court Ruling on Warrantless NSA Wiretapping Program (03/24/2006)
NEW YORK -- The New York Civil Liberties Union today formally requested that the United States Court of Appeals open to public view a secret lower court order about the National Security Agency's warrantless wiretapping program. The secret order, which was neither given to the defendant in the case nor publicly released, was issued by a federal judge in Albany in response to a motion challenging the legality of the NSA's warrantless wiretapping program.

ACLU of New Jersey Seeks “Potential Threat Elements” Details (03/21/2006)
NEWARK, NJ -- The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey today renewed a public records request to nine New Jersey towns for information about individuals and organizations designated as “potential threat elements” (PTEs), including the criteria used by the towns to make such determinations.

ACLU of Washington Seeks Files on Government Surveillance of Peace Groups (03/21/2006)
SEATTLE, WA -- In the wake of revelations of government surveillance of nonviolent protests, the American Civil Liberties Union of Washington today filed requests under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) on behalf of itself and 11 peace organizations across the state. The groups are seeking records of any surveillance of their activities by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Defense or the Seattle Joint Terrorism Task Force.

DeWine Proposal on NSA Spying Would Ratify Illegal Activity, ACLU Says; Legislation Would Weaken Oversight, Punish Whistleblowers (03/16/2006)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union today strongly rebuked legislation introduced by Senator Mike DeWine (R-OH) to ratify the warrantless surveillance of Americans by the National Security Agency. The "Terrorist Surveillance Act of 2006" would give congressional approval to the illegal program, despite the fact that a fair and comprehensive investigation of the operation has still not occurred.

ACLU Asks Federal Court to Lift Visa Ban on Tariq Ramadan (03/15/2006)
NEW YORK -- Saying the government is violating the rights of Americans to hear constitutionally protected speech, the American Civil Liberties Union and the New York Civil Liberties Union today asked a federal court to prevent the Departments of State and Homeland Security from barring a prominent Swiss scholar from entering the country to speak to American audiences.

ACLU Applauds Lawmakers for Examining Government Transparency, Sunshine Week Hearing Shows Overclassification Harms Democracy (03/14/2006)
WASHINGTON – The American Civil Liberties Union today applauded a key House panel for examining the issue of document overclassification. The hearing comes during Sunshine Week, a public education effort coordinated by journalists stressing openness in government. This is the third hearing in a series on overclassification initially sparked by the Central Intelligence Agency and Defense Intelligence Agency programs that are reclassifying and removing documents from the National Archives.

ACLU Urges Congress to Adopt Stronger Whistleblower Protections, Warns Against Legislation to Penalize Workers That Bring Abuses to Light (03/14/2006)
WASHINGTON – Calling current federal protections for whistleblowers insufficient, the American Civil Liberties Union today urged Congress to adopt legislation to better protect whistleblowers who protect public safety. Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) has introduced S.2285, the Whistleblower Empowerment, Security and Taxpayer Protection Act of 2005 (WESTPAct), to achieve these goals.

NYCLU Seeks FBI Files on New York Political Groups and Activists (03/14/2006)
NEW YORK -- In light of recent revelations that the Federal Bureau of Investigation and local law enforcement are spying on people engaged in peaceful political and religious activity, the New York Civil Liberties Union filed Freedom of Information requests today on behalf of itself and 14 of New York's most prominent political and religious groups to determine whether the FBI is spying on them.

ACLU Releases First Concrete Evidence of FBI Spying Based Solely on Groups’ Anti-War Views (03/14/2006)
PITTSBURGH – The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Pennsylvania today released new evidence that the Federal Bureau of Investigation is conducting investigations into a political organization based solely on its anti-war views.

ACLU Asks Federal Court to Block Illegal Spying Program, Citing “Concrete Harm” to Americans (03/09/2006)
NEW YORK – Saying that the Bush administration’s warrantless wiretapping of Americans is flatly illegal and unconstitutional, the American Civil Liberties Union today asked a federal court in Detroit to block the program immediately.

Closing Abu Ghraib Won’t End Abuse, ACLU Chief Says (03/09/2006)
NEW YORK -- Saying that abuse of detainees by U.S. forces stems from policy decisions made by senior military and civilian officials, the American Civil Liberties Union today said the closure of Abu Ghraib prison will not end widespread and systemic abuse.

Justice Department Continues to Stonewall on NSA Spying Program (03/08/2006)
NEW YORK -- In response to a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union, the Justice Department today released documents on the National Security Agency’s warrantless surveillance program. The ACLU said the documents, which include copies of articles, are a rehash of previously released information, and charged the Justice Department with stonewalling on its obligation to comply with a federal court order.

ACLU Condemns Secret White House Deal on Warrantless NSA Spying Program, Says Proposal Would Legitimize and Condone Illegal Activities (03/08/2006)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union today condemned an agreement announced by Republicans on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence to support legislation to ratify the Bush administration’s warrantless National Security Agency program to spy on Americans, saying it would effect a whitewash of the program before getting the full facts about it. The specific details of this partisan deal, which was apparently struck between Vice President Dick Cheney and Committee Chairman Pat Roberts (R-KS) joined by Senators Chuck Hagel (R-NE), Olympia J. Snowe (R-ME), Mike DeWine (R-OH) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC), remain unclear.