Changes

The Obama [[Justice Department]] has been accused of being "secretive, tyrannical, and oppressive" and compared with [[President George W. Bush]], "even worse."<ref>[http://donedems.com/2009/04/14/holy-crap-obama-actually-manages-to-make-the-patriot-act-worse-than-under-bush/ Obama Actually Manages to Make the Patriot Act WORSE than Under Bush], DONE, April 14, 2009,</ref>  As a candidate, Senator Obama lamented that the Bush Administration "invoked a legal tool known as the 'state secrets' privilege more than any other previous administration to get cases thrown out of civil court," however in a motion to dismiss ''Jewel v. NSA'', the Electronic Frontier Foundation litigation against the National Security Agency for the warrantless wiretapping, the [[Obama Administration]] argued that the state secrets privilege requires the court to dismiss the issue out of hand. The Obama administration argued that simply allowing the case to continue "would cause exceptionally grave harm to national security." As in the past, this is a blatant ploy to dismiss the litigation without allowing the courts to consider the evidence.  

The Obama [[Justice Department]] has been accused of being "secretive, tyrannical, and oppressive" and compared with [[President George W. Bush]], "even worse."<ref>[http://donedems.com/2009/04/14/holy-crap-obama-actually-manages-to-make-the-patriot-act-worse-than-under-bush/ Obama Actually Manages to Make the Patriot Act WORSE than Under Bush], DONE, April 14, 2009,</ref>  As a candidate, Senator Obama lamented that the Bush Administration "invoked a legal tool known as the 'state secrets' privilege more than any other previous administration to get cases thrown out of civil court," however in a motion to dismiss ''Jewel v. NSA'', the Electronic Frontier Foundation litigation against the National Security Agency for the warrantless wiretapping, the [[Obama Administration]] argued that the state secrets privilege requires the court to dismiss the issue out of hand. The Obama administration argued that simply allowing the case to continue "would cause exceptionally grave harm to national security." As in the past, this is a blatant ploy to dismiss the litigation without allowing the courts to consider the evidence.  

The Obama Jusitice Department then argued that the U.S. Government is completely immune from litigation for illegal spying — that the Government can never be sued for surveillance that violates federal privacy statutes. BirchBricker writing in the ''Auburn Journal then points out, "This is a radical assertion that is utterly unprecedented. No one — not the [[White House]], not the Justice Department, not any member of Congress, and not the [[Bush Administration]] — has ever interpreted the law this way....The Obama Administration goes two steps further than Bush did, and claims that the [[US PATRIOT Act]] also renders the U.S. immune from suit under the two remaining key federal surveillance laws: the Wiretap Act and the Stored Communications Act. Essentially, the Obama Adminstration has claimed that the government cannot be held accountable for illegal surveillance under any federal statutes." <ref>[http://my.auburnjournal.com/detail/111477.html?content_source=&category_id=&search_filter=Patriot+Act&user_id=&event_mode=&event_ts_from=&event_ts_to=&list_type=&order_by=&order_sort=&content_class=2&sub_type=&town_id= It's Actually Possible... The Patriot Act Gets Worse], Auburn Journal, 4/12/09.</ref>

The Obama Jusitice Department then argued that the U.S. Government is completely immune from litigation for illegal spying — that the Government can never be sued for surveillance that violates federal privacy statutes. BirchBricker writing in the ''Auburn Journal'' then points out, "This is a radical assertion that is utterly unprecedented. No one — not the [[White House]], not the Justice Department, not any member of Congress, and not the [[Bush Administration]] — has ever interpreted the law this way....The Obama Administration goes two steps further than Bush did, and claims that the [[US PATRIOT Act]] also renders the U.S. immune from suit under the two remaining key federal surveillance laws: the Wiretap Act and the Stored Communications Act. Essentially, the Obama Adminstration has claimed that the government cannot be held accountable for illegal surveillance under any federal statutes." <ref>[http://my.auburnjournal.com/detail/111477.html?content_source=&category_id=&search_filter=Patriot+Act&user_id=&event_mode=&event_ts_from=&event_ts_to=&list_type=&order_by=&order_sort=&content_class=2&sub_type=&town_id= It's Actually Possible... The Patriot Act Gets Worse], ''Auburn Journal'', 4/12/09.</ref>

===Religious persecution===

===Religious persecution===