New "Kill Switch" Bill Gives Obama The Power To Shut Down Internet

POLITICS

» by J. Brock June 29, 2010, 15:12pm

If the Senate votes for the Internet ‘kill switch' bill President Barack Obama will be handed the power to shut down the Internet for at least four months at a time.

The bill was approved by a key Senate committee yesterday and it will now move to the floor.

Senator Joe Lieberman is making a hard push for The Protecting Cyberspace as a National Act.

The bill would hand absolute power to the federal government to close down networks and block incoming Internet traffic from certain countries under a declared national emergency.

Despite many letters from the Center for Democracy and Technology and other private firms concerned that the bill could be used to suppress free speech, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee passed the bill.

Because of the negative response to the bill language was added that would force the government to seek approval to extend the Internet ban for more than four months at a time.

The Senate argues “That the President already had authority under the Communications Act to “cause the closing of any facility or station for wire communication” when there is a “state or threat of war”, reports the Sydney Morning Herald.

However, when Lieberman made reference to China's Internet policing policies on Sunday it made those protesting the bill even more fearful of what it could mean.

Lieberman told CNN's Candy Crowley, “Right now China, the government, can disconnect parts of its Internet in case of war and we need to have that here too.”

While this may be true, comparing the United States democracy to the communist government in China is never a good move.

How do you feel about the government controlling your Internet?

Comment Comments 13 Tags Tags: , , ,
  • SMASH

    This is a BAD idea, only evil can come of it.

  • Manuel

    Absolute Power Corrupts absolutely...This is too much power.

  • Angella Davis

    WE ARE NOT COMMUNIST CHINA!!!! Isolation and lack of information in a national emergency situation is a recipe for more rioting, more chaos, and ultimately much more loss of life. Why on earth would Lieberman or anyone think this is a valid solution to anything?

  • Laura

    I did a bunch of research on this, and the new bill is all about regulating and limiting the carte blanche that the 1934 rule gave to the president to not only disconnect any electronic communication, but to commandeer or confiscate private electronic equipment/infrastructure, not only in a state of war, but a state of threat, or in response to anyone else's war (to preserve neutrality).
    The emergency proceedings section of this bill do not give the president ANY powers at all, but rather dictate a specific procedure that must be used if he wants to take advantage of the 1934 law.

    There is definitely no kill switch in this bill. You can see for yourself. The state of emergency section of the bill is 249 and the full text is easily googlable.

    Up until this bill the govt was legal to do WHATEVER it wanted with the internet, or any tv or radio station. With this bill, the president could still do a lot of communist china type stuff, but CANNOT do whatever he wants, like just coming in and confiscating all the infrastructure.

    Maybe there are things to dislike about the bill, but it definitely gives the govt. less power over the internet, not more.

  • Hazza

    Welcome to Fascist SS ***** America - the uSSa -United Security States of America

  • eddie

    Obama is starting to become more of a dictator every second.

  • http://jamicei.tumblr.com J Ivie

    Bad Bad Bad! since when do we live in a totalitarian communistic country!?! This is wrong and I can hardly believe it.

  • shon

    not good at all.

  • Anne

    The United States of America is NOT a communist country and it will never be one!

  • Bob

    They didn't put the Fed Reserve switch on.
    Now, were all on the plantation.
    No comment is required, is it?

  • Mike

    Thank you Laura. Ya this is a very poorly written article. Their is no "kill switch" of any kind. This article will just stir the m*****es into chanting "facism.....socialism....blah blah blah"

  • http://therage311.deviantart.com/ Infinite Fruit

    Yes, we must not lose our heads over a bill before we read in between the lines. If this new bill is indeed for limiting power that the government already had, then we should just keep doing what we've always been doing--keeping our heads down like little sheep. That way we haven't gotten in any trouble and will find ourselves in no trouble... no one gets their computers and stuff confiscated by the government. Right? Right...

  • corey duncan

    if they keep pressing us down, we as a people will press back and thats when **** will hit the fan! o and f*** obama and everybody that supports him!!!