"New restrictions employing wire-tapping and unlawful surveillance are being instituted to furthur erode our "Liberal" system of government."

During WWII FDR gave the FBI complete authority to lntercept all transAtlantic cables and a virtual free hand when it came to domestic surveillance, wiretapping and opening mail.

A woman got a commendation and a special medal from the government for finding a bit of microfilm under the stamp of an inocuous domestic letter that sent six German spies to the gallows."

"Unfortunately, all of these principles are being trashed such as "Habeas Corpus",

President Lincoln interfered with freedom of speech and of the press and ordered that suspected political criminals be tried before military tribunals. Probably Lincoln's most controversial act was suspending the writ of habeas corpus.


Soon after declaring war on Germany and its allies in 1917, Congress ruled that the U.S. mail could not be used for sending any material urging "treason, insurrection or forcible resistance to any law." It punished offenders with a fine of up to $5,000 and a five-year prison term. The government soon banned magazines including THE MASSES and THE NATION from the mails for expressing anti-war sentiment.