P-G Editorial Board: Gov't Opening Your Mail=Police State

Today's editorial in the P-G:

The Bush administration now appears to be "going postal" in a new assault on Americans' privacy and right to confidentiality in their communications, this time by mail.

President Bush declared last month that the administration has the right to open Americans' mail without a court-approved warrant. He has already arrogated to the government the right to intercept Americans' telephone calls and e-mails without benefit of a court order, in direct violation of a law setting out the rules for such action.

Mr. Bush announced what he considers to be government authority to invade citizens' privacy in another of his now more than 800 "signing statements." The statements, which are legally suspect, are declarations made by a president when signing a bill passed by Congress; the statements may expand on or alter whatever may be in the actual legislation.

When challenged on the mail-opening matter by the media, Mr. Bush's spokesperson, Tony Snow, said that this was not a new power the president was claiming, that the government had it all along and that it would open mail only in "exigent circumstances," to protect public safety.

"Exigent circumstances" means that the government will open citizens' mail only when it feels it necessary. There was no explanation of what those circumstances might be or who would make the decision that the circumstances were exigent. The White House also did not say how the Bush administration was able, without new legislation, to get around the legal requirement that government agents get a warrant to open first-class mail.

Another disturbing aspect is that Mr. Bush's statement on the subject now probably means the administration has already been opening Americans' mail.

No reasonable person would argue that a truly suspicious piece of mail shouldn't be inspected by relevant postal authorities. At the same time, just as with the National Security Agency's illicit wiretaps on American citizens, there is no reason not to require that a court order be obtained, in accordance with the law, to authorize the
interception and opening of mail in question. That means that another pair of nonpolitical eyes is aware of and considers the wisdom of the request, protecting the privacy of the correspondent.

This measure, new or not, is consistent with the state of fear the Bush administration consistently tries to foster among the public, using it as a justification for whittling away at Americans' freedoms. The problem is that a government reading the people's mail at will is one of the unmistakable traits of a police state.

Here's the law dubya signed. And here's what the White House said about it.

There are a couple of places where (again) dubya is placing himself above the law he just signed. For instance, section 3662 (page 20 of the 66 page pdf file) of the law outlines how and for what reason a complaint can be lodged with the Postal Regulatory Commission. Dubya's first paragraph of his signing statement says:

The executive branch shall construe sections 3662 and 3663 of title 39, United States Code, as enacted by section 205 of the Act, not to authorize an officer or agency within the executive branch to institute proceedings in Federal court against the Postal Regulatory Commission, which is another part of the executive branch, as is consistent with the constitutional authority of the President to supervise the unitary executive branch and the constitutional limitation of Federal courts to deciding cases or controversies.

So if you find out that the government's opened your mail and you think that's illegal, you can't file a grievance.

Then there's the part everyone's talking about:

The executive branch shall construe subsection 404(c) of title 39, as enacted by subsection 1010(e) of the Act, which provides for opening of an item of a class of mail otherwise sealed against inspection, in a manner consistent, to the maximum extent permissible, with the need to conduct searches in exigent circumstances, such as to protect human life and safety against hazardous materials, and the need for physical searches specifically authorized by law for foreign intelligence collection.

This is where dubya says your mail can be opened. It's hidden in the "exigent circumstances" part.

Look carefully and you'll see that what the statement is saying is that, (as with the NSA's warrantless domestic surveillance) if the government wants to open your mail, all it needs to say is that it's for "foreign intelligence collection" and there's nothing you can do about it. You'll probably never even know. As dubya once said, "Freedom is on the march."

I'll end this by quoting Conan O'Brien:

President Bush is claiming that a new postal law gives him the authority to read anyone's letters without a warrant. If you're upset about the law, you can let Bush know by writing to your sister.

I don't even have a sister. But I do know that a free society shouldn't allow its government to open its mail without a serious amount of oversight.