At issue are phone records the National Security Agency (NSA) obtained earlier this decade while spying on the Oregon-chapter of the al-Haramain Islamic Foundation, which the government accused of being a supporter of terrorism. The foundation’s lawyers gained access to the records in 2004 after the Treasury Department inadvertently shared them with al-Haramain, before federal officials reclaimed the documents after realizing the mistake. The foundation, which is now defunct, needs those documents in order to proceed with its case against the government, and Walker has made it clear the plaintiffs deserve to have their day in court.

 

Walker called upon the Justice Department in January and April to craft a so-called “protective order” by which only the plaintiffs’ lawyers could access the documents without the information being disclosed publicly and jeopardizing national security. Last Friday the Obama administration refused again to cooperate, in effect daring Walker to order the government to disclose the evidence or face a constitutional showdown.

 

Appointed by President George H. W. Bush, Walker has defied the government before on cases involving national security. He rejected the George W. Bush administration’s state secrets claim in lawsuits against telecommunication companies that helped the NSA with its secret electronic eavesdropping program. Those lawsuits were undercut by Congress when it granted immunity to the companies being sued.

-Noel Brinkerhoff

 

Access to Top-Secret Papers at Issue in Wiretapping Case (by Jim Abrams, Washington Post)

Obama Dares Judge to Order Release Of NSA Spy Document (by David Kravets, Threat Level blog, Wired)

Obama Administration Again Defends Bush Wiretapping (AllGov)