richard leon ruling that it violates fourth amendment protection.

in a 68-page ruling federal judge richard leon described the government surveillance program has almost orwellian, a dragnet, and what once would have been considered the stuff of science fiction. he even invoked the founding fathers. "i have little doubt the author of our constitution, james madison, would be aghast." under the nsa program, the government collects and stores

. >> reporter: in a 68-page ruling, judge richard leon said the government surveillance program was almost orwellian. and said i have little doubt that the author of our constitution james madison would be aghast at what the judge said amounts to an unreasonable such.

richard leon ruling that it violates fourth amendment protection. he called the program almost orwellian and says that james madison would be aghast at the scope of it. but he held off shutting down the program. the justice department had little reaction beyond saying they are studying the opinion. there is this from edward snowden, i acted on my belief that the nsa programs would not withstand a constitutional

judge richard leon said the program violates the constitution's ban on unreasonable searches. hold so that the government can file an appeal. >>> and a wildfire in big sur, california, has destroyed at least 15 homes and forced the evacuation of about 100 residents. california is suffering the driest calendar year on record. >>> while most of us consider cockroaches unwelcome creatures, they are not entirely useless. turns out the insects are big business. seth doane visited a place in china where roaches rule. >> reporter: just off a freeway in china's shandong province, this is not exactly appeals, but then again, neither is what's inside. cockroaches, tens of millions of them. and chief admirer. he's part farmer. >> i've been interested in insects since i was 8 years old he told us. 16 years ago, he started farming these critters commercially, yes, there say market. business is very good, he told us, many pharmaceutical factories make products with them. almost all of his roaches are used in traditional chinese medicine. he claims they can cure what ails you from the heart,

district judge richard leon ruled against that program and called it almost uncertainly unconstitutional and almost or orwellian. how this could impact the rest of the country. clifd roski is a professor at the university of utah, largest lgbt civil rights organization, joining us from salt lake. thanks so much for joining us here. you believe that what's happening in utah could set a precedent, could help decide the same sex marriage all across the country don't you? >> absolutely. this is a case where as utah goes so goes nation. this is the first federal court ruling since last summer when the supreme court struck down the defense of marriage act. this is the first example of how courts are going to apply that decision to the states. >> this is happening rapid though isn't it? we're talking about the number of states that have allowed same sex maicialg, doubled in the -- year. did you anticipate that corlts would rule so quickly? >> not how quickly the court rules but how quickly the decision was put into effect. normally the court would ask for a stay which is a temporary pause as th

richard leon sitting in washington, d.c. ruled the opposite way in a suit brought against the phone company verizon for bulk collection of phone records. he wrote, i have serious doubts about the efficacy of the metadata collection program as a way of creating time sensitive investigations, edwar edward sns disclosure bts the nsa programs, at home and around the world. so where are we tonight? well, last week the white house issued a report that was commissioned in the wake of the edward snowden affair in which it seemed to suggest that some changes may very well be in the offing in this country into the way this kind of metadata as it's called is collected and stored. meanwhile, edward snowden had what he always wanted, as a new year's present, national if not international debate over spying. many people feel that this issue is so big and with two federal judges coming to completely different conclusions on basically the same issue, it's heading towards the supreme court in washington, d.c. tony. >> you were talking about

district court judge richard leon finds that the bulk collection of records, known as section 218 of the patriot act is in contradiction to the amendment. the nsa's bulk telephony meta data program significantly intrudes on that. in cases involving imminent threats of terrorism. the suit brought by larry clayman of freedom watch against the obama administration challenged the constitutionality of the bulk collection of phone records and the nsa's authority to do so. tonight the ruling is described by civil liberties group as a setback for the obama administration and the nsa. >> the reasoning is -- it is broad enough that it effectively holds the whole program to be constitutional -- unconstitutional. so i don't think it will be easy for government to argue that this program could continue given that a judge held it is illegal and violated the fourth amendment. >> patrick layhe who introduced the freedom act to end the bulk collection of phone records said americans deserve an open and transparent debate about the constitutionality, efficacy and the appropriateness of the government'

judge richard leon ruled that the phone metadata collection is likely in violation of the constitution, specifically the fourth amendment prohibitions against unreasonable search and seizure. >> the judge wrote: >> in the ruling judge leon stayed the injunction, he wants to give the government time to appeal. for the time being the metadata collection conditions on, there's a ruling that the government will defend on appeal. >> the white house deferred action to the department of justice. they put out a statement, saying they have seen the court ruling, they are studying it: >> this is the secret court in the center the of the controversy, that hears appeals when the intelligence community wants to go for warrants and other tools to look into potential terrorist or security threats, they go to the court, and the department of justice points out on 35 separate occasions they authorised just the sort of telephonic metadata collection that the court addressed today. now, the man at the center of this controversy, edward snowden, has released a statement that reads in part: >> there'll be

. >> less than two weeks ago federal judge richard leon in washington dc reached the opposite conclusion finding that the nsa program is likely unconstitutional. the lawsuit was filed by the aclu after the program was revealed by edward snowden. >> earlier this month the president panel recommended major changes to the nsa program. a senior white house official here in hawaii said when the president returns to washington in january he will recommend a specific set of reforms. >>> breaking news out of syria. a government air strike hit a crowded vegetable market. activists say at least 21 people have been killed. for nearly two weeks president ahhad's war planes and helicopters have pounded opposition controlled areas of the city. >>> in lebanon a young man died after he was severely wounded in a car bombing. among the dead is mohammed chata. he was a former ambassador to the u.s. >>> the chinese ice breaker that was sent the rescue a research ship stuck in arctic ice is now trapped. more than 70 people are aboard that ship trapped on christmas eve. a chinese ice breaker is about 7 miles

just who is judge richard leon, the man behind the ruling? republican first nominated by george w. bush in 2001, confirmed later in 2002. he's best known for rulings in cases involving guantanamo bay detainees, backing the administration saying foreign prisoners had no way to challenge in court. he ruled against the bush white house when he decided that five prisoners had been illegally held at guantanamo bay for nearly seven years. >> the n.s.a. likely to abhot at thattic today when the president meets with top tech executives from apple, google, yahoo, twitter and several other big companies, discussing the recent efforts to rare healthcare.gov. it has been two months since the n.s.a. information that they were tapping the phone calls of angela merkel from germany. germans want spying to stop altogether across the country. the u.s. is reversing to extend the no spying guarantee beyond the chance lower, saying they don't want to create a precedent with other countries. >> merkel sworn in this morning for a third term at germany's chancellor.

district judge richard leon described the nsa's activities as "almost orwellian." wrote -- judge leon was appointed to the bench by republican president george w. bush in 2002. leon suspend enforcement of his injunction against the program pending an expected appeal by the government. the suit was brought by conservative attorney larry klayman, the founder of judicial watch them based on information leaked by former nsa contractor edward snowden. in a statement monday, snowden said -- snowden went on to say -- joining us in washington, d.c. is sascha meinrath, director of the new america foundation's open technology institute. he served as an expert witness who advise the review group on intelligence and two indications which was tasked by president obama to review the nsa activities. first, respond to the judge's ruling. >> it is his store. it is the very vanguard of the pushback that says constitutionally, legally, what has been taking place is unacceptable. i think it is a reaffirmation of both are for the memo rights, constitutional guaranteed right, in this co

district judge richard leon set the program almost certainly does violate a reasonable expectation of privacy. technologyorwellian used by the nsa enables the government to store and analyze the ruling which is been held by liberals and some conservative sets up a high-stakes battle over security and spying in america which is expected to be decided i the supreme court. >> a federal judge is finally pushing back and saying to the nsa ,no, mass collection of phone records is not legal. >> it's a victory for nsa leaker edward snowden revealed this summer how much phone data the nsa is gathering. the president has said this row graham and another that tracks e-mails are key to the fight against terror. least 50ow of at threats that have been averted because of this information. >> the judge refuted that argument. for now, the program continues pending the governments almost certain appeal. the justice department says it is studying the decision. here is some breaking news -- we are taking a live look from news chopper seven above a house fire in prince george's county in landover, maryla

on monday federal judge richard leon issued a 68-page opinion saying the program that collects phone records of millions of people is probably unconstitutional. he added, quote, i have little doubt the author of our constitution james madison would be aghast. the government says the so- called met take data can help identify potential terrorists without infringing on privacy. former nsa contractor edward snowden exposed this and other secret monitoring programs earlier this year. top executives from companies like apple, facebook and google with users and customers concerned about government snooping are calling on the obama administration to scale back the surveillance practices. some firms are working on technology to shield user data from government spies. but in the case of telephone records, legal experts expect appellate courts to back the nsa. 15 judges have ruled 35 times to uphold the program. >> i think it's more likely than not that this case will be overturned. >> reporter: the white house says it is reviewing which spying programs should continue. ko im for cbs news, the

judge richard leon said the massive round-up of calls was an unreasonable search and violated americansasonable expectation of privacy. but he put his decision on hold pending a likely government appeal. we'll have more on today's ruling right after the news summary. the u.n. made a record $6.5 billion appeal today for aid to tackle syria's refugee crisis. more than nine million syrians have fled in the past three years as a civil war rages. two million of them have escaped to nearby countries, including many who are now enduring unusually cold weather in tented camps. the u.n.'s high commissioner for refugees said the money would go chiefly to countries who've taken in the largest number of fleeing syrians. >> we are addressing the needs of a potential number of 4.1 million refugees at the end of 2014, projecting the present trend until then. but but also of 2.7 million vulnerable people in the host communities. there is a tragedy in the plight of syrian refugees. but let's not forget that they would have no place to go without the generosity of the neighboring countries. >> ifill: we'

richard leon said that he cannot imagine a more indiscriminate and arbitrary invasion and granted an injunction against the two plaintiffs in this case, but he put enforcement on the decision on hold, pending an appeal citing significant national security interests. the plaintiffs went to court after former nsa contract worker edward snowden disclosed the government's massive data collection program. snowden's actions caused domestic and international debates. >>> foreign ministers from the european union are trying to put their russian counterpart at ease. they met with sergey lavrov and said they would not harm relationships with russia in any way. lavrov said the wish of its people should be respected. >> it was our common agreement that everyone should respect sovereignty of any country, including ukraine. the trade agreement would pave the way for ukraine's entrance into the e.u., but it was decided last month to walk away from the deal out of consideration with ukraine's ties for russia. protesters have hit the streets and haven't left. >>> a large winter storm is hitting japan

another federal judge, richard leon, says the nsa's bulk data collection not okay because there's no proof it can stop terrorist attacks. now one former cia director is pointing out what he believes is a key difference in those roger goodellings aside from the obvious headlines. >> judge pauly relied on precedent. judge leon relied on exclamation points throughout his judgment, not precedent. >> reporter: inside the beltway there is some difference of opinion about the value of edward snowden's disclosures but bipartisan agreement that his motives are still suspicious. >> you know, he has kindled an important public debate, but frankly i think it came from a mixture of motivations on his part. >> he stole american classified documents that, because of their release, jeopardizes our troops in the field in places like afghanistan. >> reporter: this week "the washington post" reported that snowden said his mission is accomplished. now his lawyer says he's ready to come home if laws are changed to preserve his freedom. >> mr. snowden's disclosures have been profoundly valuable to the cou

district judge, richard leon, stated, "i cannot imagine a more indiscriminate and arbitrary invasion than the systemic and high-tech collection and retention of personal data." the judge further stated that collecting this data violated the fourth amendment. the nsa director defended the practice, saying it's done to protect americans. >> the purpose of these programs and the reason we use secrecy is not to hide it from the american people. not to hide it from you. but to hide it from those who walk among you who are trying to kill you. >> so that's the nsa's account however, the judge also questioned the effectiveness of the program. terry and laura, the judge noted the government, quote, does not criteria a single instance in which analysis of the bulk metadata collection actually prevented any kind of attack. so if the data mining efforts are even working, that is also in question this morning. back to you. >> thanks so much, peggy. >>> and you know today's meeting comes about a week after many tech companies banded together to launch a website, calling for major reform ohs to the

his decision contrasts with the ruling earlier this month where judge richard leon granted an injunction against collecting phone records of two men who had challenged the program saying the program likely violates the u.s. constitution's ban on unreasonable search. >> also new this morning, target says customers encrypted bin data was taken during the massive data breach. target had admitted encrypted data was stolen and stopped short of saying pin numbers were taken. in a statement issued a few hours ago target says additional forensic work shows pin numbers were taken, but that the numbers are safe because the information is strongly encrypted and can only be decrypted when authorized. >>> happening right now, ac transit union workers are voting to approve or reject definitive contracts. got to look at the ac transit union headquarters. it's quiet outside. members of the union have all day today to vote on the tentative deal that is was reached with ac transit last friday. they have been negotiating since march and already voted down two previous deals. union members threatened to str

but federal judge richard leon today called all that metadata gathering indiscriminate and arbitrary invasion of privacy. i am not convinced, he said, the nsa database has ever truly served the purpose of rapidly identifying terrorists. he questioned the relevance of a 1979 supreme court ruling relied on by the government that said phone customers have no privacy interest in their calling records. the judge said that's been eclipsed by technology in what he called a cell phone-centric lifestyle. >> it's ultimately going to be a decision for the court of appeals or supreme court to decide anyway. what this one judge decides today is just a conversation starter, not a conversation stopper. >> reporter: but it's a victory for a washington, d.c., lawyer who wants to stop the government from collecting information about his calls. >> metadata allows the government to be able to tell who you are associating with, whether it's your doctor, your lawyer, your accountant, whoever. it is extremely intimidating. >> reporter: for edward snowden the obama administration rejected any idea what he b

the ruling is by judge richard leon, a conservative appointee of george w. bush. >>> there are new plans that keep the a's in oakland. it involves building a new ballpark that would have the same sort of feel as their rivals across the bay. nbc bay area's chase kain is live in oakland with a look. >> reporter: hey, terry. we should emphasize first this is just an idea. there are still a lot of hurdles to overcome, including acquiring this land, getting permission to build a stadium, and then of course paying for that stadium. but the idea does have some pretty significant support, including even that of oakland's mayor. a brand new ballpark right on the bay, but no, we're not talking about the giants. this could be the home of the oakland a's. >> oh, no. that's nice. that's nice. they don't need to go anywhere. right here on the waterfront. that'd be excellent. >> i think it's beautiful. it runs right up there with the giants stadium. it's beautiful. >> i think that would be great for oakland. that would be really great. because we don't need them out of tow

what judge richard leon said is and we livehanged in what he called a cell phone centric culture. we use our phones for a lot more we expect more protection of what we do with those phones. a lot ofhas gotten criticism from other people who say well, yeah, you use your lot more, to read books and hold up at rock concerts and share photos and none of which have anything to do with phone calls. some legal scholar is even think on our phones less for communication now. it is a controversial part of his ruling but it was the essence of it. >> what are the prospects for appeal as a result of that? >> the government will certainly appeal. it goes to the d.c. court of appeals here in washington. they may or may mott agree with him. this could be a more conservative court. willnows whether that survive appeal. and then, of course, what happens if it goes to the u.s. court, which it seems likely that it will ultimately have to be worked out. meantime, judge leon at least said while i feel strongly about this i'm putting my own ruling on ice so this program can continue. >> how is the intel

. >> reporter: in the 68-page ruling, judge richard leon said the government surveillance program was almost orwellian and said i have little doubt that the author of our constitution, james madison, would be aghast at what the judge said amounts to an unreasonable search. the justice department responded saying, we believe the program is constitutional as previous judges have found. president obama put together a commission to look into the nsa practices shortly after former nsa contractor edward snowden leaked details of the program. >> our sources say that that commission is going to recommend largely the same thing, which is that the nsa stop keeping that massive database, that it either lives somewhere else, maybe at the phone companies, and that they get an individual court order for each case. >> reporter: the judge put his decision on hold pending a government appeal. tara mergener for cbs news, washington. >>> edward snowden weighed in on all this saying that he felt the judge's ruling justified his decision to leak those secret documents. the white house's report on nsa prac

s metadata program most likely violated the fourth amendment as part of that ruling a judge richard leon ordered the government to stop collecting data on two plaintiffs who brought the case against the u.s. government now u.s. officials have for many years asked americans to sacrifice some of their privacy in the name of security but so far no top u.s. official can mention any danger imminent danger that's been thwarted through the collection of everyone's personal information the secret status of the documents which exposed the n.s.a. surveillance played a key role during this ruling daniel make adams is the executive director of the ron paul institute for peace and prosperity he told you why he thinks the wording of the verdict could be cause for major concern. this ruling by judge of holy it on friday said that the a.c.l.u. doesn't have the right to challenge this collection of metadata because that was it was going illegally because of the the revelations by snowden because congress meant for section two fifteen of the patriot act to be secret orders under that sentient to be secret

companies now a federal judge has weighed in on the nsa is massive spike in us district court jge richard leon says that the industry's bulk collection of telephone records is probably unconstitutional describing it as an almond tree in patient privacy. and he said that the government had failed to prove that the program had prevented a single attack. under fire from the courts and key allies present brock obama has been meeting with internet executives. as he defends a program that has a dwindling number of support obama sat down with top names from the tech industry the meeting itself was held behind closed doors but concerns about the nsa is clandestine activities were on the agenda. some of those presents like yahoo microsoft and google want us spying scaled back. the meeting comes just a day after a washington court ruled that mass government espionage is most likely unconstitutional data protection advocates say it's due process were applied then it's clear that the nsa is breaking us lots yes they really want to be open they would allow these programs. the challenge to open in federal c

s metadata program most likely violated the fourth amendment as part of that ruling judge richard leon ordered the government to stop collecting data on two plaintiffs who brought the case against the u.s. government will have to wait and see if the supreme court does take up the issue of the n.s.a. very controversial metadata program us president barack obama was asked to identify any specific instance in which analysis of the n.s.a.'s bulk metadata collection actually stopped an imminent attack the u.s. president could not identify one instance or at least he did not give one example to the journalists that were asking him now u.s. officials have for many years asked americans to sacrifice some of their privacy in the name of security but so far no top u.s. official can mention any danger imminent danger that's been thwarted through the collection of everyone's personal information. well meantime journalist glenn greenwald is when channeling revelations from n.s.a. whistleblower edward snowden lashed out at the mainstream media for turning a blind eye to the government's while ations

in a scathing ruling, judge richard leon wrote "the government does not cite a single instance in whichlysis of the nsa's bulk metadata collection actually stopped an imminent attack." throughout, u.s. officials have justified the nsa's mass surveillance program saying they have been successful averting acts of terrorism. 54 separate acts to be exact. although over time that figure has evolved from 54 plots -- >> 54 times this and the other program stopped and thwarted terrorist attacks to here and europe. >> to 42. >> 42 of those 54 were terrorist plots. >> to 13 plots or cases involving americans. >> would you agree that the 54 cases that keep getting cited by the administration were not all plots? and of the 54 only 13 had some nexus to the u.s.? would you agree with that? yes or no? >> yes. >> reporter: senator patrick leahy, the chairman of the senate judiciary committee, told me the administration has overstated the program's successes. >> well, i believe the nsa and general alexander and those speaking for him greatly exaggerated. we went from 54 which became sort of the symbol u

in a blistering attack, judge richard leon said he has little doubt that the author of our constitution, james madison, would be aghast at what judge leon said amounts to an unreasonable search. the judge granted a preliminary injunction to stop the government from collecting the records of the two men who brought the challenge, but then he put that order on hold in the face of a likely appeal. senior correspondent john miller is former deputy director of national intelligence and, john, what is the n.s.a.'s argument for collecting this information? >> reporter: well, scott, this is all about collecting the massive database of phone numbers dialed by americans. now, the n.s.a. is legally barred from spying on americans, but the agency is supposed to gather foreign intelligence that will help prevent another terrorist attack on u.s. soil. now, since 2006 whenever the n.s.a. has learned of a phone number being used by a terrorist group overseas one of the first things they want to know is, is that suspect talking to anyone in the united states. to answer that question, the n.s.a. obtained

s metadata program most likely violated the fourth amendment as part of that ruling a judge richard leon ordered the government to stop collecting data on two plaintiffs who brought the case against the u.s. government now u.s. officials have for many years asked americans to sacrifice some of their privacy in the name of security but so far no top u.s. official can mention any danger imminent danger that's been thwarted through the collection of everyone's personal information. revelations from when they say whistleblower edward snowden to the mainstream media for turning a blind alley to go by lay should. come from germany oh peter all of those in the international. perhaps the most anticipated speech of this year's calles communication conference was the keynote address by journalist and political commentator glenn greenwald he delivered his keynote speech by videophone to a packed out auditorium here in albuquerque and which he praised edward snowden for the work that he's done and also called on those governments that have shown indignation at the revelations of how much their citiz

well peter you know i'm mindful of what the judge said judge richard leon quote i cannot imagine a more indiscriminate and invasion in this systematic and high tech collection effort against americans without judicial approval well you know that's pretty clear you know that's sort of an opinion but i think it's also a decision his party stayed the decision but it was very very clear to him and what he did he did his homework like nobody else has done and he went through those three f.b.i. cases the ones they advertise this where this kind of collection was was useful and he found them all to be bogus all bogus and so having done his homework he made this ruling now you know with respect to snowden coming home well you know anybody who knows anything about what's happened to recent whistleblowers knows that this was never an option for us to host node and thomas drake of the n.s.a. who suffered for years of of pressure commission and persecution at the hand of eight just department of justice lawyers after which the judge in maryland said look you justice apart and lawyers don't ever eve

i want to read to you one segment of a ruling handed down by judge richard leon here in washington, u.s. district judge who said, it's one thing to say that people expect phone companies to occasionally provide information to law enforcement. it's quite another to suggest that our citizens expect all phone companies to operate what is effectively a joint intelligence gathering operation with the government. what do you respond to that? >> first of all, i would respond that the judge leon was looking at the acquisition of the data and not how the data was used. so this is not a broad fishing expedition, granted. billions of phone records a day are acquired by the national security agency, but what follows is really important. what happens to that data. how often is that data touched. the truth is, it's touched two to three hundred times per year and only based upon a reasonable articulate suspicion that that number is affiliated with terrorism. >> judge leon also talks about as you said the acquisition of this data, underlying supreme court precedent dates back to case from 1979 in no wa

less than two weeks ago, federal judge richard leon in washington, d.c. reached the opposite conclusion finding that the n.s.a. program is "likely unconstitutional" and calling it "almost orwellian." the lawsuit that led to today's decision was filed by the a.c.l.u. in june, soon after the program was revealed by former n.s.a. contractor edward snowden. the a.c.l.u. said today it will appeal, a process that's expected to take many months. earlier this month, a presidential panel recommended major changes in the n.s.a. program and, jeff, today a senior white house official here in hawaii told me that when the president returns to washington in january he will propose a specific set of n.s.a. reforms. >> glor: chip reid traveling with the president in hawaii tonight. chip, thank you. at midnight tonight life will change for more than 1.3 million americans. all have been without a job for 27 weeks or more. until today, they have had long- term unemployment benefits. those end as the new federal budget kicks in. major garrett is at the white house tonight. ma