WAS THE NSA METADATA DRAGNET a criminal act? “The two programs violate both the letter and the spirit of federal law. No statute explicitly authorizes mass surveillance. Through a series of legal contortions, the Obama administration has argued that Congress, since 9/11, intended to implicitly authorize mass surveillance. But this strategy mostly consists of wordplay, fear-mongering and a highly selective reading of the law. Americans deserve better from the White House — and from President Obama, who has seemingly forgotten the constitutional law he once taught.”

In Obamerica, what’s not explicitly forbidden to the government is permitted, and what’s not explicitly permitted to the citizenry is . . . .