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Google Challenges U.S. Gag Order, Citing First Amendment
Washington Post ^ | Tuesday, June 18 | Craig Timberg

Posted on 06/18/2013 1:29:31 PM PDT by nickcarraway

Google asked the secretive Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court on Tuesday to ease long-standing gag orders over data requests it makes, arguing that the company has a constitutional right to speak about information it’s forced to give the government.

The legal filing, which cites the First Amendment’s guarantee of free speech, is the latest move by the California-based tech giant to protect its reputation in the aftermath of news reports about sweeping National Security Agency surveillance of Internet traffic.

Google, one of nine companies named in NSA documents as providing information to the top-secret PRISM program, has demanded that U.S. officials give it more leeway to describe the company’s relationship with the government. Google and the other companies involved have sought to reassure users that their privacy is being protected from unwarranted intrusions.

In the petition, Google is seeking permission to publish the total numbers of requests the court makes of the company and the numbers of user accounts they affect. The company long has made regular reports with regard to other data demands from the U.S. government and from other governments worldwide.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Editorial; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS:

1 posted on 06/18/2013 1:29:31 PM PDT by nickcarraway
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To: nickcarraway

They know Snowden has A LOT more to release about them.


2 posted on 06/18/2013 1:31:05 PM PDT by Buckeye McFrog
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To: Buckeye McFrog

Yep. Time for damage control.


3 posted on 06/18/2013 1:32:37 PM PDT by null and void (Republicans create the tools of opression, and the democrats gleefully use them!)
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To: nickcarraway

losing business for it’s sneaky business


4 posted on 06/18/2013 1:42:22 PM PDT by molson209
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To: nickcarraway

Wouldn’t they need government approval to file this in the first place?


5 posted on 06/18/2013 1:42:33 PM PDT by Raycpa
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To: Buckeye McFrog

Has the government charged Snowden yet?


6 posted on 06/18/2013 1:46:18 PM PDT by gov_bean_ counter (Romans 1:22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,)
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To: nickcarraway

Trying to improve their tarnished image. Stool pigeons.


7 posted on 06/18/2013 1:48:40 PM PDT by ZULU ((See: http://gatesofvienna.net/) Obama, do you hear me?)
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To: gov_bean_ counter

To my knowledge, no. They seem to be having a hard time getting a handle on just how much he took, which is interesting.


8 posted on 06/18/2013 1:49:12 PM PDT by Buckeye McFrog
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To: Buckeye McFrog
I thought someone was on record as saying they absolutely knew what had been taken. And therein may be the problem.

I think Snowden has this administration shared shiftless (misspelled on purpose).

9 posted on 06/18/2013 1:53:41 PM PDT by gov_bean_ counter (Romans 1:22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,)
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To: gov_bean_ counter

well, shared shb scared...


10 posted on 06/18/2013 1:54:46 PM PDT by gov_bean_ counter (Romans 1:22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,)
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To: nickcarraway

I’m curious how the government would go about enforcing such a gag order.

How do you throw a corporation in jail? And if they prosecuted, they’d have to defend the charges in court. Which would pretty much eliminate any secrecy. Not to mention giving Google the opportunity to go discovery fishing.


11 posted on 06/18/2013 1:59:04 PM PDT by Sherman Logan
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To: nickcarraway

And still ... FreeRepublic.com allows/uses Google-Analytics.


12 posted on 06/18/2013 2:06:12 PM PDT by First_Salute (May God save our democratic-republican government, from a government by judiciary.)
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To: Sherman Logan

Why that’s easy, they’d hold the trial in a secret court with no right to use classified evidence in your defense. The American way!


13 posted on 06/18/2013 2:09:50 PM PDT by DesertRhino (I was standing with a rifle, waiting for soviet paratroopers, but communists just ran for office.)
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To: Sherman Logan
It might just be kabuki theater. Eric Schmidt is firmly in the Zerobama camp, and has visited the WH dozens of times.

Right now, G00gle is fighting its negative image as a spying stooge of the administration. Any perception that they are not in cahoots helps their PR.

14 posted on 06/18/2013 2:10:46 PM PDT by rfp1234 (Arguing with a marxist is like playing Chess with a Pigeon.)
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To: nickcarraway

Shoulda stuck with “Don’t be evil” or whatever that tagline was they quickly abandoned when they went bigtime...


15 posted on 06/18/2013 2:12:11 PM PDT by Norm Lenhart
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To: First_Salute
And still ... FreeRepublic.com allows/uses Google-Analytics.

Use Firefox, and install the NoScript add-on. Then, block google-analytics.com.

16 posted on 06/18/2013 2:17:50 PM PDT by justlurking (tagline removed, as demanded by Admin Moderator)
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To: nickcarraway

Google “Do No Harm” commies trying to cover their complicity in treason. Don’t worry, Page, we have plenty of lampposts and won’t run short.


17 posted on 06/18/2013 2:56:28 PM PDT by sergeantdave (No, I don't have links for everything I post)
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To: nickcarraway
Google asked the secretive Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court on Tuesday to ease long-standing gag orders over data requests it makes, arguing that the company has a constitutional right to speak about information it’s forced to give the government.

If it's FORCED; it ain't GIVEN...

18 posted on 06/18/2013 3:17:59 PM PDT by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: First_Salute

Heck - we gotta SEARCH function!

(Lame; but we GOT one!)


19 posted on 06/18/2013 3:19:02 PM PDT by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: nickcarraway

PR campaign tactic.

They are partners as mandated by law to the NSARaand other alphabet agencies.

They are wed to the government as a matter of their business plan.

They are in league with them as a matter of ideology their


20 posted on 06/18/2013 4:19:51 PM PDT by Vendome (Don't take life so seriously, you won't live through it anyway)
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