Trump Says He Supports Reauthorizing Patriot Act, NSA Metadata Collection

Truth in Media ^ | Dec 7, 2015 | Barry Donegan

[TBP]

"I tend to err on the side of security," said 2016 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on the Hugh Hewitt Show.

2016 Republican presidential candidate and billionaire real estate mogul Donald Trump said that he supports reauthorizing the USA PATRIOT Act and bulk cell phone metadata collection by the National Security Agency in an interview on the Hugh Hewitt Show earlier this month.

In the above-embedded clip, Hewitt asks Trump, “On metadata collection, Ted Cruz is glad the NSA got out of it. Marco Rubio wants it back. What’s Donald Trump think?”

“Well, I tend to err on the side of security, I must tell you,” Trump replied, “and I’ve been there for longer than you would think. But, you know, when you have people that are beheading if you’re a Christian and frankly for lots of other reasons, when you have the world looking at us and would like to destroy us as quickly as possible, I err on the side of security, and so that’s the way it is, that’s the way I’ve been, and some people like that, frankly, and some people don’t like that.”

“And I’m not just saying that since Paris, I’m saying for quite some time. I assume when I pick up my telephone people are listening to my conversations anyway, if you want to know the truth. It’s pretty sad commentary, but I err on the side of security,” said Trump.

[TBP]

Oh, but they are our effects. NSA data collection on all Americans without warrants violates the Constitution.

The Cruz approach is better — require warrants (as required under the Fifth Amendment), but broaden the tools that can be used for a legitimate, warranted data collection.

But what the NSA is doing is authorized neither by the constitution, no (according to its chief author) by teh Patriot Act itself.

[SubMareener]

So when you go for a walk in the desert your foot steps in the sand are your effects and are protected by the Fourth Amendment?

[hotsteppa]

Apparently you havent been through a lot of the threads then to say people who support Cruz also criticize him. Just not true.

[TBP]

Yes, it is true. I’ve done it myself, and I’ve seen many others do so. Apparently you havent been through a lot of the threads.