National Security
The Judiciary Committee oversees many of the laws, agencies, and programs that underpin our national security infrastructure. Whether debating the constitutional limits of executive power, examining the application of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or evaluating counterterrorism efforts at the Department of Justice and the FBI, the Committee is working to ensure that the government keeps Americans safe-and does so in a way that respects our civil liberties and reflects our values.
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"Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to associate myself with your comments about our jurisdiction.
"It is not an accident that the House Judiciary Committee is the committee of primary jurisdiction with respect to the legal architecture of government surveillance.
"In times of heightened tension, many of our colleagues will rush to do something, anything, to get out in front of an issue. We welcome their voices in the debate-but it is here, in this Committee room, that the House begins to make decisions about the tools and methods available to law enforcement.
On Tuesday, March 1, 2016 at 1:00 p.m., the House Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing titled "The Encryption Tightrope: Balancing Americans' Security and Privacy." The House Judiciary Committee previously held member briefings on encryption, which included a briefing from technology companies and a classified briefing from the government.
"For several reasons, I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join me in opposing H.R. 3892, the 'Muslim Brotherhood Terrorist Designation Act of 2015.'
"Most importantly, our Committee is marking up this bill without holding a single hearing and without considering the serious diplomatic and foreign policy ramifications of our actions.
"Less than one year ago, our Committee marked up a bill expressing the sense of Congress that the Taliban ought to be designated a terrorist organization by the United States government.
House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI) released the following statement after the White House unveiled its roadmap for closing the U.S. military prison facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba:
Earlier this week, through a court order, the United States government demanded that Apple Inc. help the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) develop software in an effort to break the encryption on an iPhone that was recovered after the recent shootings in San Bernardino, California. The government cited the "All Writs Act," enacted in 1789, to demand that the technology company create a new version of the iPhone operating system to circumvent several security features on the device. Apple has five days to respond to the court's order.
Today U.S. Representatives John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.), Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee, and Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), Ranking Member of the Immigration and Border Security Subcommittee released the following statements after the Departments of Homeland Security and State announced yesterday implementation of the Visa Waiver Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act of 2015: