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Hannah James

@hannahajames.bsky.social
330 followers 36 following 31 posts

Counsel at the Brennan Center Views are my own

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Hannah James @hannahajames.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Yet another reason why Congress must not reauthorize Section 702 surveillance without meaningful reforms:
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Mario Trujillo @mariotrujillo.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
There is no comprehensive tally of ICE subpoenas to tech companies in the second Trump administration. But this is a start www.eff.org/deeplinks/20...
eff.org
A List of ICE Subpoenas to Tech Companies
This is likely an undercount. The full scope is hard to pin down because these subpoenas typically only come to light when a user is given notice and challenges them in court, or when a company docume...
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Hannah James @hannahajames.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
New reporting from @theguardian.com highlights DHS’s continued misuse of administrative subpoenas. As @emileayoub.bsky.social and I explain in a recent piece, this sweeping authority is long overdue for reforms. www.justsecurity.org/153773/admin...
justsecurity.org
No Warrant, No Problem: Administrative Subpoena Powers and an Outdated Fourth Amendment Doctrine
Numerous federal agencies possess statutory authority to obtain sensitive data without advance judicial approval or probable cause of illegal activity.
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Brennan Center @brennancenter.org · 25/08/2026
DHS agents secretly recorded meetings of anti-ICE protesters at churches, libraries around Minneapolis, infiltrated group chats, sought financial records, and more. The scope of the surveillance was “breathtaking,” @rlevinsonwaldman.bsky.social tells NPR.
npr.org
Churches, libraries and breweries: Inside DHS' covert surveillance operation
DHS allegedly went undercover at community meetings, subpoenaed the financial records of labor unions, and created dossiers on people at a church gathering, according to court filings.
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Hannah James @hannahajames.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
Numerous federal agencies, including DHS, can obtain our sensitive information without probable cause or prior judicial sign-off using a legal tool called an administrative subpoena. @emileayoub.bsky.social and I explain how these subpoenas work and how Congress should course-correct. ⬇️
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Liza Goitein @lizagoitein.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
Jay Clayton has been sworn in as Director of National Intelligence (DNI). What’s next for Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act? 1/17
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Emile Ayoub @emileayoub.bsky.social · 02/07/2026
1/ The Supreme Court’s ruling in Chatrie v. United States is a win for privacy. In a 6-3 decision (with Justice Gorsuch concurring in judgment), the Court ruled that police need a warrant to obtain a person’s cell phone location information from a third party. Some background and key takeaways:
supremecourt.gov
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Brennan Center @brennancenter.org · 05/06/2026
A bill up for a vote in the senate would renew the government’s power to conduct warrantless surveillance of Americans. @lizagoitein.bsky.social lays out the stakes of the fight over FISA Section 702.
video.snapstream.net
The Brief With Jim Sciutto - Elizabeth Goitein joins The Brief
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Liza Goitein @lizagoitein.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
On Friday, the Trump administration, which is demanding that Congress pass a straight reauthorization of FISA Section 702, missed a deadline to declassify a FISA Court opinion that reportedly reveals yet more major Section 702 compliance problems. 1/14
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Hannah James @hannahajames.bsky.social · 27/04/2026
Speaker Johnson's latest proposal to reauthorize FISA Section 702 would perpetuate warrantless government access to Americans' "incidentally" collected communications. @lizagoitein.bsky.social and I explain why the House should reject the proposal (again): www.justsecurity.org/137206/johns...
justsecurity.org
Fool’s Gold: Speaker Johnson’s Section 702 proposal would place no limits on backdoor searches
A critique of the Speaker's most recent legislative proposal to reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).
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Liza Goitein @lizagoitein.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
In a dramatic scene that unfolded in the wee hours this morning, members of the House defeated a ploy by the administration and Speaker Johnson to ram through a 5-year reauthorization of FISA Section 702. Here’s what happened, and what will/should happen next. 1/20
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Brennan Center @brennancenter.org · 15/04/2026
President Trump is urging Congress to renew Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, but lawmakers in both parties oppose extending it without reforms. Congress now has a chance to protect Americans’ privacy. bit.ly/4tASUmW
brennancenter.org
Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act
For too long, this law has allowed the government to evade privacy protections and spy on Americans. Reform is overdue.
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Liza Goitein @lizagoitein.bsky.social · 10/04/2026
The @nytimes.com has a story tonight that should put a nail in the coffin of the administration’s plans to push a straight reauthorization of FISA Section 702. Bottom line: the FBI is seemingly *still* engaged in systemic violations of the law. 1/20 www.nytimes.com/2026/04/09/u...
nytimes.com
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Hannah James @hannahajames.bsky.social · 31/03/2026
The FBI reports a large drop in its warrantless searches of Americans' communications under Section 702. @lizagoitein.bsky.social and I explain why the reported numbers don't tell the full story — and why a warrant requirement is still needed.
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Liza Goitein @lizagoitein.bsky.social · 20/02/2026
By a 6-3 vote, the Supreme Court has held that Trump’s worldwide tariffs exceeded his authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). The decision is a victory for the rule of law and the separation of powers. 1/18 www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25p...
supremecourt.gov
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Brennan Center @brennancenter.org · 20/02/2026
SCOTUS tariffs ruling "is a victory for the rule of law," says @lizagoitein.bsky.social. Emergency laws like IEEPA "give presidents vast powers that are highly vulnerable to abuse." The Court stopped Trump from stretching them beyond what Congress intended.
brennancenter.org
Supreme Court Strikes Down President Trump’s Tariffs; Brennan Center Reacts
Court held in Learning Resources v. Trump that the president exceeded his authority under the International Economic Emergency Powers Act.
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Brennan Center @brennancenter.org · 09/02/2026
No DHS funding without stronger oversight and accountability, civil liberties protections, curbs on violence. Congress must "flex its muscle" - by @rlevinsonwaldman.bsky.social, @margyoh.bsky.social, @hannahajames.bsky.social
justsecurity.org
Expert Survey on DHS, CBP, and ICE Reforms
Experts detail targeted reforms and legislative pathways Congress could enact to improve ICE and CBP accountability.
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Just Security @justsecurity.org · 03/02/2026
DHS has a Fourth Amendment problem. @hannahajames.bsky.social of the @brennancenter.org explains why the agency’s new policy allowing ICE to enter homes to conduct arrests is not only a break from past practice, it violates the Constitution. www.justsecurity.org/130497/dhs-w...
justsecurity.org
DHS Warrantless Home Entry Memo’s Fourth Amendment Problem
A leaked ICE memo authorizes warrantless home raids, defying DHS policy and raising grave Fourth Amendment concerns.
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Brennan Center @brennancenter.org · 07/01/2026
The Constitution gives Congress, not the president, the power to declare war. bit.ly/49qN4Mv
brennancenter.org
No Legal Basis for Invading Venezuela
1989’s U.S. military action in Panama offers no constitutional cover for Trump’s Venezuela attack.
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Liza Goitein @lizagoitein.bsky.social · 27/10/2025
My take on the appellate courts' rulings in the Nat'l Guard cases, & why SCOTUS should follow the approach of the 7th Circuit (which held that the deployment was untethered to the facts), not the 9th Circuit (which accepted the admin's alternate reality): www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...
brennancenter.org
Appeals Courts Split on Domestic Military Deployments
The Supreme Court must now recognize how excessive judicial deference to the president can endanger Americans’ fundamental liberties.
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Hannah James @hannahajames.bsky.social · 24/10/2025
Sen. Cotton is reportedly pushing for an 18-month extension of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Project for Privacy & Surveillance Accountability explains why that would derail any meaningful consideration of reform: www.protectprivacynow.org/news/the-lat...
protectprivacynow.org
The Latest Proposal to Compromise Americans’ Privacy – Delay the Reauthorization Debate of Section 702
​Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act is an authority enacted by Congress to allow U.S. intelligence agencies to surveil foreign spies and terrorists. But it has been used in...
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Hannah James @hannahajames.bsky.social · 12/09/2025
Members of Congress, represented by the Brennan Center & co-counsel, just filed a federal court brief defending the independence of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB). It’s in support of 2 board members fired without cause by the Trump admin www.brennancenter.org/sites/defaul...
brennancenter.org
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Margy O’Herron @margyoh.bsky.social · 05/09/2025
The Trump administration’s plan to use 600 military lawyers as temporary immigration judges, with some starting as soon as this week, will deprive immigrants of a fair hearing and further erode the line between military personnel and civilian government. 1/14
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Joseph Nunn @josephanunn.bsky.social · 02/09/2025
THREAD: This morning, U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer ruled that President Trump's use of National Guardsmen and Marines to support federal law enforcement in and around Los Angeles violated the Posse Comitatus Act. (1/22) www.cbsnews.com/news/judge-t...
cbsnews.com
Judge rules Trump's deployment of troops to Los Angeles violated federal law
U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer ruled in favor of California Gov. Gavin Newsom in his challenge to President Trump's deployment of troops to Los Angeles.
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Brennan Center @brennancenter.org · 02/09/2025
A U.S. Court of Appeals ruled Friday that Trump exceeded his presidential authority by imposing tariffs. The Brennan Center filed a brief in the case arguing that the emergency powers law he relied on didn’t grant presidents that authority. bit.ly/4g31plb
apnews.com
Court finds Trump's tariffs an illegal use of emergency power, but leaves them in place for now
A federal appeals court has ruled President Donald Trump illegally used emergency powers to impose sweeping tariffs but left them in place for now. The U.S.
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Joseph Nunn @josephanunn.bsky.social · 11/08/2025
THREAD: This morning, President Trump and members of his cabinet announced a set of sweeping, unprecedented, and unwarranted actions to impose federal control over local policing in Washington, D.C.
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Brennan Center @brennancenter.org · 24/07/2025
The government has proposed expanding the mandatory collection of social media identifiers. It would widen social media surveillance to include not only travelers and visa applicants and visa holders, but also their U.S. citizen contacts. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...
brennancenter.org
The Government’s Growing Trove of Social Media Data
It’s increasingly collecting and using social media information to make high-stakes decisions related to immigration.
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Spencer Reynolds @sreynolds.bsky.social · 24/07/2025
Border Patrol is buying new tech... "advanced AI" to surveil dense residential areas? Automated surveillance towers? Tech to see through walls?? I talked to @sambiddle.com of @theintercept.com about serious risks amid the agency's increasingly aggressive behavior. theintercept.com/2025/07/23/c...
theintercept.com
Border Patrol Wants Advanced AI to Spy on American Cities
A Customs and Border Protection “Industry Day” deck also asks for drones, seismic sensors, and tech that can see through walls.
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Joseph Nunn @josephanunn.bsky.social · 15/05/2025
The @nytimes.com is reporting that the Trump administration has requested deployment of 20,000+ National Guard members to help with immigration enforcement inside the U.S. This is an unprecedented move that raises a host of legal and practical concerns. 1/8
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Liza Goitein @lizagoitein.bsky.social · 13/05/2025
Yesterday the Brennan Center filed an amicus brief in support of four companies that challenged Trump’s imposition of worldwide tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). 1/15 www.brennancenter.org/our-work/cou...
brennancenter.org
Amicus Brief in Emily Ley Paper et al., v. Trump
On May 12, 2025, the Brennan Center for Justice filed an amicus brief in Emily Ley Paper et al., v. Trump, opposing the government's motion to transfer the case to the United States Court of Internati...
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Brennan Center @brennancenter.org · 05/05/2025
Turning the U.S.–Mexico border into a military zone seems designed to sidestep Congress. It’s the kind of presidential overreach that Congress and the courts should check.
brennancenter.org
How Turning the Border into a Military Zone Evades Congress and Threatens Rights
The administration is trying to evade limits on domestic use of the armed forces.
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Brennan Center @brennancenter.org · 29/04/2025
The line between the military and civilian government is one of the most important safeguards that we have. Creating a military installation on the border? “It steps over that line,” @lizagoitein.bsky.social tells @maddow.msnbc.com www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...
msnbc.com
Trump exploits loophole to militarize the border; Americans potential targets of military arrests
Donald Trump has essentially turned the border into a military base in order to be allowed to use the armed forces to make arrests, including of any Americans in the vicinity. Elizabeth Goitein, senio...
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Hannah James @hannahajames.bsky.social · 29/04/2025
In a memo obtained by @usatoday.com, the Attorney General authorized federal law enforcement to conduct warrantless raids on homes as part of its deportation efforts under the Alien Enemies Act. This enforcement strategy raises serious 4th Amdt concerns. 1/9 www.documentcloud.org/documents/25...
documentcloud.org
DOJ March 14 memo Alien Enemies Act
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Brennan Center @brennancenter.org · 10/04/2025
If the SAVE Act were enacted into law, it would be one of the worst voting laws ever passed by Congress. The Senate must vote to reject it.
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Just Security @justsecurity.org · 07/04/2025
A court held searches of #FISA Sec 702 data for US person communications are subject to the 4th Amdt. warrant requirement @hannahajames.bsky.social (@brennancenter.bsky.social) asks: will broad reading of the foreign intelligence exception swallow the rule? www.justsecurity.org/109879/forei...
justsecurity.org
Foreign Intelligence Exception Loophole in the Hasbajrami Decision
The Hasbajrami decision’s expansive view of the FISA foreign intelligence exception threatens the impact of applying warrant requirements.
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Just Security @justsecurity.org · 20/03/2025
The political question doctrine does not bar judicial review of the Trump administration’s recent #AlienEnemiesAct invocation, writes @ebrightyon.bsky.social; to the contrary, precedent establishes the important role of courts. www.justsecurity.org/109330/polit...
justsecurity.org
The Courts Can Stop Abuse of the Alien Enemies Act – the Political Question Doctrine is No Bar
A legal analysis concluding that the political question doctrine does not bar review of Alien Enemies Act invocation
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Brennan Center @brennancenter.org · 01/04/2025
Tell Congress: Reject the SAVE Act. The SAVE Act would restrict 21 million American citizens from voting by requiring a birth certificate or passport to register to vote. Let your representatives in Congress know you’re against this legislation:
secure.brennancenter.org
Call Congress: Reject the SAVE Act
The SAVE Act could block millions of American citizens from voting.
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