Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) has written a letter to outgoing Attorney General Eric "Too Big to Jail" Holder about all those other letters the senator has sent to the AG asking why, exactly, the DoJ thinks that mass spying is legal.
Second, I have written to you on multiple occasions about a particular legal opinion from the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) interpreting common commercial service agreements. As I have said, I believe that this opinion is inconsistent with the public's understanding of the law, and should be withdrawn. I also believe that this opinion should be declassified and released to the public, so that anyone who is a party to one of these agreements can consider whether their agreement should be revised or modified.
In her December 2013 confirmation hearing to be the General Counsel of the CIA, the deputy head of the OLC stated that she would not rely on this opinion today. While I appreciate her restraint, I believe the wisest course of action would be for you to withdraw and declassify this opinion, so that other government officials are not tempted to rely on it in the future. I urge you to take these actions as soon as practicable, since I believe it will be difficult for Congress to have a fully informed debate on cybersecurity legislation if it does not understand how these agreements have been interpreted by the Executive Branch.
Senator Wyden Follows Up With Eric Holder On All Of The Requests The DOJ Has Totally Ignored [Mike Masnick/Techdirt]
(Images: Senator Ron Wyden in B n' W., Sam Craig, CC-BY-SA; Official portrait of United States Attorney General Eric Holder, Public Domain)
