Is the Trump administration creating a centralized database that tracks the activities Americans? Americans who are not suspected of committing a crime?
That’s the question at the heart of a new lawsuit filed against the administration by the Freedom of the Press Foundation. That’s an organization advocating for press freedoms.
These allegations stem from an executive order signed by Donald Trump last year encouraging data sharing between federal agencies and the elimination of “information silos.” In the last year, the Trump administration has loosened restrictions around the Central Intelligence Agency’s access law enforcement data. It has also allowed Immigration and Customs Enforcement to access Medicaid data and given ICE access to data from the Internal Revenue Service.
These instances of data sharing between agencies have led to court battles and raised concerns over the amount of access the federal government has to our personal data and what they’re doing with it.
We discuss the erosion of privacy protections under the Trump administration and what it means for you.
A statement from Flock…
“Flock does not share data on behalf of customers – agencies own and control their data and decide how it’s shared. As is made clear in our Terms & Conditions, “all right, title, and interest in and to Customer Data belong to and are retained by Customer.” Agencies can opt to share 1:1, within a geographic radius, across statewide or nationwide networks, or not at all. All searches on the platform are logged in an unalterable audit trail.
Any sharing with federal law enforcement must be done on a 1:1 basis; federal agencies are not part of statewide or nationwide networks. In order for an agency to establish a sharing relationship with federal law enforcement, the local agency must explicitly allow federal law enforcement to discover that they exist within the Flock system (a setting that is opt-in only and off by default); federal law enforcement must then request access to that system; and the local agency must then accept federal law enforcement’s share request.
Flock does not have any contracts with ICE or any DHS subagency. You can read more here.On contract renewals: law enforcement agencies nationwide use Flock to help solve serious crimes. When a tool that is actively helping solve violent crimes is removed, public safety moves backward. That has real consequences: cases will take longer to solve, organized retail theft crews will operate with fewer obstacles, an Amber Alert may not be returned home, and victims may wait longer, or indefinitely, for justice. You can read more here.”
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In his new book Stand, U.S. Senator Cory Booker shares stories of how leaders of the past and present overcame the odds stacked against them with virtues including grace, humility and creativity. He stopped in Chicago on Sunday, March 29 as part of his book tour, and spoke to Sasha-Ann Simons in front of a live audience.
This episode of In the Loop is an abridged version of that hour-long conversation where the senator discusses the new book, his criticisms of the Democratic Party and views on Trump Administration policies.
For a full archive of In the Loop interviews, head over to wbez.org/intheloop.
Plus: Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says the U.S. plans to eventually take control of the Strait of Hormuz. And the CEO of Air Canada will retire following a bungled condolences message after the LaGuardia crash. Imani Moise hosts.
An artificial-intelligence tool assisted in the making of this episode by creating summaries that were based on Wall Street Journal reporting and reviewed and adapted by an editor.
President Trump says the US is in serious discussions with what he described as a new and more reasonable regime to end military operations in Iran. Also: Russia comes to the aid of Cuba by sending more than 700,000 barrels of oil to the communist island. Thieves in Italy make off with paintings by Renoir, Cezanne and Matisse - worth millions of dollars - after breaking into a museum near the city of Parma in a matter of minutes. As General Min Aung Hlaing is set to become Myanmar's next president, we ask if it will be business as usual? One of the biggest manhunts in Australian history comes to an end as the man wanted for killing two police is shot dead. Researchers in Italy find that those who stay up late at night are more likely to be depressed, anxious and irritable. And an incredibly rare bronze-age shield is returned to Scotland for the first time in more than 230 years.
The United Nations General Assembly - UNGA, last week, voted overwhelmingly for a resolution to designate the transatlantic slave trade as “the gravest crime against humanity”. The US, Israel and Argentina voted against the proposal, while 123 nations voted in support of it. The UK and European Union members are among the 52 countries that abstained from the vote. The resolution was tabled by Ghana with the backing of the African Union and Caribbean nations. We examine what this resolution means for African countries and its youth.
Also, we hear from a curator of an art exhibition in Berlin, Germany - held to commemorate the sacrifices of over 700,000 African soldiers who fought on behalf of France during the 1st and 2nd World Wars.
Presenter : Nkechi Ogbonna
Producers: Blessing Aderogba, Bella Twine and Daniel Dadzie
Technical Producer: David Kinyanjui
Senior Producer: Charles Gitonga
Editors: Samuel Murunga and Maryam Abdalla
Contributing editor Jonathan Schanzer joins us for another update on the Iran war and Trump's comments on the Strait of Hormuz and Iranian oil, what type of ground operations might be launched, and how can the president sell his plans to the public? Plus, John recommends the new streaming sitcom American Classic.
Domestic migration in the U.S. has been declining for decades. This morning, we'll look into who's still moving, what factors drive their decision, and what's behind the shift. Plus, do wealthy people really flee to tax-friendlier pastures when their taxes go up? But first, there's a sort of backup plan for the oil supply, but the ongoing war in the Middle East means it could soon be under threat, as well.