The National Rifle Association has filed a legal brief in support of an ACLU lawsuit demanding the NSA end the gathering of massive amounts of information and data belonging to American citizens. Why? Both groups believe data collection could be used to create a national gun registry.
In a brief filed in federal court, the NRA argues that the National Security Agency's database of phone records amounts to a "national gun registry."
"It would be absurd to think that the Congress would adopt and maintain a web of statutes intended to protect against the creation of a national gun registry, while simultaneously authorizing the FBI and the NSA to gather records that could effectively create just such a registry," the group writes.
In its filing, the gun-rights group claims that the NSA's database would allow the government to identify and track gun owners based on whether they've called gun stores, shooting ranges or the NRA.
"Under the government’s reading of Section 215, the government could simply demand the periodic submission of all firearms dealers’ transaction records, then centralize them in a database indexed by the buyers’ names for later searching," the NRA writes.
The ACLU lawsuit also addresses intimidation of reporters and journalists by the government through massive data collection.
Back in July, the Department of Justice issued new guidelines for how it handles investigative journalists after it was revealed dozens of Associated Press and Fox News reporters had been secretly under surveillance.