Internet Regulation: In the Hands of Big Government

I was looking through the news this morning, and I stumbled upon this article shown below. It details a new movement in Congress where President Obama would be allowed to regulate "Internet traffic in a state of emergency." Now, I understand why some might think this a good thing, but we must understand that the Internet is a medium where free speech flows. Any regulation of it would would be a violation of that freedom. Furthermore, the language of the bill does not specify what an "information network or a cybersecurity emergency" is; this definition would be left to Obama himself. What then constitutes an emergency? If no boundaries are explicitly stated, then anything would constitute an emergency because the president says so.

Furthermore, as I understand the Constitution, no stated powers in the Constitution would allow for the President of the United States to make such a definition, nor, do I think, Congress has the power to delegate this authority to him, for, as I already said, it is a violation of our first amendment right to restrict the freedom of speech. This seems to be what this bill is about.

This proposition worries me!

Steve Aquino
Mother Jones
April 3, 2009

Should President Obama have the power to shut down domestic Internet traffic during a state of emergency?

Senators John Rockefeller (D-W. Va.) and Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) think so. On Wednesday they introduced a bill to establish the Office of the National Cybersecurity Advisor—an arm of the executive branch that would have vast power to monitor and control Internet traffic to protect against threats to critical cyber infrastructure. That broad power is rattling some civil libertarians.

The Cybersecurity Act of 2009 (PDF) gives the president the ability to “declare a cybersecurity emergency” and shut down or limit Internet traffic in any “critical” information network “in the interest of national security.” The bill does not define a critical information network or a cybersecurity emergency. That definition would be left to the president.

The bill does not only add to the power of the president. It also grants the Secretary of Commerce “access to all relevant data concerning [critical] networks without regard to any provision of law, regulation, rule, or policy restricting such access.” This means he or she can monitor or access any data on private or public networks without regard to privacy laws.
Rockefeller made cybersecurity one of his key issues as a member of the Senate intelligence committee, which he chaired until last year. He now heads the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, which will take up this bill.

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