Houston, TX — Former New Mexico Governor and 2012 presidential candidate Gary Johnson released the following statement in response to President Obama’s proposed changes to NSA data gathering:
“The President’s proposals are disappointing, but not surprising. It is simply not realistic to expect the federal government to voluntarily relinquish powers it has granted itself, even when those powers may be unconstitutional. And when the government has convinced itself that it is OK to sweep up the phone calls, texts and emails of hundreds of millions of Americans, it is no surprise that the President is not really proposing to change anything.
“Even if the President’s proposed ‘reforms’ are adopted, we will still have a government that has access to our most personal data, needing only the blessing of a secret court to use that data however it wishes. That is not a protection that satisfies the 4th Amendment’s prohibition of unreasonable searches.
“The government and its agencies will not rein themselves in. Neither will Congress — unless the American people demand it, at the polls, at the grassroots and in the public square.”