How far should the government’s surveillance programs go?

Guests: Josh Gerstein Alex Abdo, Benjamin Wittes

When Edward Snowden exposed the National Security Administration’s domestic surveillance program, many Americans began to question the ethics, legality and effectiveness of such efforts. Last week, with a decision in ACLU vs. Clapper, a federal appeals court ruled that the Administration’s massive collection of individual phone records is illegal. Now, it’s up to Congress to decide how far the government can go when it comes to tracking our communications. Should the Section 215 of the Patriot Act be extended or should surveillance activities be reined in? Politico’s JOSH GERSTEIN starts off the hour explaining the court’s ruling and this week’s activities on Capitol Hill regarding the Patriot Act. Then, we’ll debate what the government should and should not do when it comes to domestic surveillance. We’ll be joined by ALEX ABDO, who argued ACLU vs. Clapper on behalf of the ACLU, and BENJAMIN WITTES, editor-in-chief of Lawfare blog and a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution.

AP Photo/Charles Dharapak, File