US lawmakers demand investigation into Trump administration’s secret surveillance of Americans
Summary
Two U.S. lawmakers, Senator Ron Wyden and Representative Pramila Jayapal, have asked a government watchdog to investigate how the Trump administration secretly collected private information from journalists, non-profits, and unions without court approval. They are concerned about the use of administrative summonses by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) beyond their intended customs-related purpose.Key Facts
- Senator Wyden and Representative Jayapal requested the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to investigate DHS’s use of secret administrative summonses.
- DHS used these summonses to get six months of phone records of journalist Georgia Fort without judicial oversight.
- DHS also sought YouTube account information on Georgia Fort and Don Lemon after courts had rejected search warrants.
- Both journalists face civil rights charges related to a protest they were covering and have pleaded not guilty.
- DHS has used summonses to obtain financial data from labor unions and non-profits and issued subpoenas to companies like Meta, X, and Reddit to reveal anonymous critics.
- The summonses include language asking companies not to inform the targeted individuals, but experts say this language is not legally binding.
- Wyden and Jayapal also raised concerns about the Department of Justice and Drug Enforcement Administration pressuring companies to keep subpoena requests secret.
- They requested GAO to check if DHS made policy changes after a 2017 report found misuse of administrative summonses.
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