The title pretty much says it all — Civil Liberties versus National Security (Ben Franklin, I believe, recommended the former), but for a little light reading you might enjoy the American Civil Liberties Union petition for certiorari (pdf) against the National Security Agency.
Questions presented:
1. Whether the Court of Appeals erred in holding that plaintiffs who have been injured because of government surveillance are precluded from challenging the lawfulness of that surveillance if the government refuses to disclose whether plaintiffs communications have been intercepted.
2. Whether the President possess the authority under Article II of the Constitution to engage in intelligence surveillance within the United States that Congress has expressly prohibited.
Thanks for the reminder to pay my dues.
So, the gist of the case is, as the court of appeals saw it, plaintiffs couldn’t challenge NSA wiretapping because they couldn’t prove they were actually being wiretapped, but it’s a secret who’s getting wiretapped, so no one could ever prove they were being wiretapped, etc. An oversimplification, probably, but geez!! Is the better analogy The Trial or 1984? The government is listening to your phone calls, but you can’t do anything about it because it’s secret…
Perhaps Catch-22 could apply? Alice in Wonderland?