@ISIDEWITHQuestionsDomestic PolicyStarted 10yrs agoActive 3wks ago

Should the NSA (National Security Agency) be allowed to collect basic metadata of citizen’s phone calls such as numbers, timestamps, and call durations?

Under a provision of the Patriot Act the NSA is allowed to collect phone metadata — the numbers, time stamps, and duration of a call, but not its actual content. Opponents include civil liberties advocates and Senator Rand Paul who argue that the collection is unconstitutional since it is done without a warrant. Supporters of the collection argue that the collection is necessary to track suspected terrorists.

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Answer Overview

Response rates from 4.2m America voters.

31%
Yes
69%
No
25%
Yes
53%
No
6%
Yes, basic data collection is necessary to track suspected terrorists
14%
No, only with a warrant showing probable cause of criminal activity
2%
No, and abolish the NSA

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Other Popular Answers

Unique answers from America voters whose views went beyond the provided options.

 @8SRZSQK from Texas  answered…4yrs4Y

No, only with a warrant showing probable cause of criminal activity and abolish the NSA fbi Cia ntf open area 51

 @9DFBWJQ from Colorado  answered…2yrs2Y

Yes but only for emergencies/if necessary for an investigation, other then that, no

 @8P9SVNY from Florida  answered…4yrs4Y

Yes because it is useful for many different issues and doesn't really have a downside

 @8F3MHJ9 from New York  answered…4yrs4Y

No, this is an unconstitutional invasion of privacy, not to mention the potential racism and sexism that could result from this.

 @8DKPLXY from California  answered…4yrs4Y

Yes, but limit the data.

 @B2KJ2JX from Wisconsin  answered…1mo1MO

yes, if someone is being tried for a serious crime, such as murder, then a conflicting time of a phone call could help prove innocence

 @B2FLL9Y from Nebraska  answered…2mos2MO

I think this should only be able to look is suspicion of crime or anything related other than that we deserve privacy of who we talk to and what we do.

 @B24VFLL from Missouri  answered…3mos3MO

Only if there is active proof that the person they want to get information from are going to do something bad. Not just that they are a person of color so immediately they're suspicious.

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Active 4 days ago

 @ISIDEWITH submitted…4mos4MO

Trump's Deportation Storm: America Braces for Mass Exodus of Immigrants

For months, immigration advocates have been planning for the possibility of Donald Trump’s return to the White House. Now, their worst fears have arrived.Immigrants’ rights groups have spent the last year preparing for a second Trump term and an overhaul of the nation’s immigration system, analyzing Trump’s proposals, drafting legal briefs, coordinating messaging and organizing aid for immigrants and asylum seekers. They responded to Trump’s victory with alarm and vowed to put up a fight, setting the stage for four more years of contentious court battles with his administration.Some are already preparing to push current leadership at the Department of Homeland Security to take steps to stymie the incoming Trump team, particularly on immigrant detention and the use of AI in enforcement.“We should expect to see the devastation of immigrant communities all over the country. We should expect to see family separation,” said Kica Matos, the president of the National Immigration Law Center. “It is entirely possible that he will try to use the military to carry out deportations, so that means that Americans all over the country will see the military engaging in enforcement against civilian populations, which is horrifying.”Trump, after winning a historic victory on a platform of turbo-charged immigration enforcement, has said he will conduct mass deportations at a scale never before seen. Immigrant advocates have warned this would be expensive and inhumane, separating families and wrecking communities. The president-elect has also vowed to build huge detention camps, hire thousands more border agents, funnel military spending toward border security and invoke the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to expel suspected members of drug cartels and criminal gangs without court hearings.He has also said he would end “catch-and-release” — allowing migrants to remain free, often with monitoring, while they await immigration court hearings — and restore a policy from his first term requiring asylum seekers to remain in Mexico while their cases are processed. And he has dodged questions about whether he would try to bring back family separation.

▲  4333 replies

 @ISIDEWITH submitted…4 days4D

Bernie Sanders Charges Ahead As Democrats Stall Out

Bernie Sanders launched a tour in red states like Iowa and Nebraska to rally opposition to Donald Trump’s agenda, drawing massive crowds—thousands in Omaha and overflow audiences in Iowa City.Unlike the Democratic Party’s muted response to Trump’s election, Sanders is actively challenging the administration’s plutocratic policies, focusing on billionaire influence and federal deregulation.In Iowa City, Sanders spoke to packed venues, delivering back-to-back speeches to accommodate attendees, a first in his political career, highlighting his enduring appeal.He criticized Trump’s inner circle, including billionaires Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg, who attended the inauguration, and warned of their control over federal agencies.Sanders galvanized the crowd with historical references—suffrage, slavery, independence—urging grassroots action to counter Trump’s planned $1 trillion tax cuts for the rich and cuts to programs like Medicaid.Attendees expressed frustration with Democratic leaders like Hakeem Jeffries, calling their opposition to Trump weak or nonexistent, while praising Sanders for providing direction.Sanders highlighted the slim Republican House majority (three seats), suggesting constituent pressure could sway vulnerable GOP members to block Trump’s reconciliation bill.Early signs show GOP walkbacks—like Trump’s false claim Medicaid won’t be cut—after outrage over federal grant pauses disrupted services, proving grassroots impact.The crowd, mostly liberal, cheered Sanders’ defense of reproductive rights and jeered Trump’s USAID cuts and Zelensky attacks, though some noted a shift in his base—younger Trump supporters absent.Sanders ended with Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, framing the fight as a timeless struggle against billionaire rule, inspiring attendees like Audrey to re-engage and Erin to find hope in solidarity.

▲  1917 replies