the obama administration has named a new acting head for the civil rights -- justice department's civil rights division. vanita gupta will take up the position after serving as legal director for the american civil liberties union, where she developed a reputation as a champion for human rights. gupta will be appointed temporarily and formally nominated for the position by the end of the year. she was tapped to replace president obama's initial choice, debo adegbile, who was forced to withdraw earlier this year. the senate rejected adegbile following a fight that focused almost solely on his role as part of an naacp legal defense fund team that successfully argued a trial judge's jury instructions violated the rights of journalist and former black panther mumia abu-jamal in his conviction for the killing of a philadelphia police officer. in a new case of political attribution, pennsylvania lawmakers have approved a measure that critics say tramples free-speech. the measure authorizes censoring the public addresses of prisoners or former offenders should judges allow that -- agree that allowing them to speak would cause damage to the victims. the measure was approved after a pretaped commencement address earlier

democratic candidate is shenna the former executive director of the american civil liberties union. she has not held elective office. welcome to you both. in the first segment, we are going to tackle broad topics. devote 4-5g to minutes to each topic. we hope you will articulate your position as well as your differences with each other. shenna, the number one concern of our listeners and viewers is people are concerned about e'sn's economy -- main economy and jobs. what will you do to improve the economy and jobs? >> thank you for hosting this. it is wonderful to be here in bangor. 350 walked across maine, issue thatnumber one people said was jobs and the economy. i walked three miles. a farmer talked about investment in infrastructure. heells heirloom potatoes -- acrosseirloom potatoes the country, but it takes him 20 minutes to get online. he said if we had broadband access, people like him could grow their businesses. people could connect with the bal economy. infrastructure is number one. tax and fair an regulatory environment. >> what will you do to create better paying jobs? >>

. >> reporter: the american civil liberties union and senior staff attorney mary katherine roper area report claiming american policing has become unnecessarily and dangerously militarized with almost no public discussion or oversight. >> they are accountable to the public and we are supposed to be able to ask them what they're doing and why. >> reporter: yet the new jersey police wouldn't tell the nbc 10 investigators which local agencies took tactical gear. a spokesman said it was a security concern. in delaware we found state police among the most restrained in our area, turning down mine resistant and armored vehicles. records show they've only accepted nontactical equipment like medical kits and sleeping bags. >> we've had police cars destroyed by rifle fire. >> reporter: warwick police chief mark goldberg is one of the chiefs with access to this. we found a 36,000 pound war machine down the street from peace valley park in bucks county. that mine resistant vehicle may have been meant for battal broad but it makes its home here in new britain, pennsylvania, under the care of the

we can build a barred partisan coalition is decided when i was in the american civil liberties union. we can build a bipartisan coalition on common ground and common principles to create a tax code that is more fair to working families, to make sure that the wealthiest americans pay their fair share and also to create a budget that focuses priorities on investing and -- in local communities and jobs and health care and stop spending so much money on overseas wars, surveillance programs we cannot afford in a criminal justice system that is out of control. that is what i would do to bring priorities more in line with the needs of working families in our state. is fromhird question sandra. i would love to hear the candidates opinions on the millions of dollars being spent for the senate race and gubernatorial race especially when people in maine are going hungry or without medication or without jobs. >> a campaign-finance system is broken. we have a congress of millionaires and cleaners and people like the do not run for federal office very often. we need to overturn citizens united beca

we can build a bipartisan coalition, just as i did when i was in the american civils liberty union. we can build this around common ground, around common principle, to create a tax code that is more fair to working families, to make sure that the wealthiest americans pay their fair share. and also to create a budget that we focus priorities on investing in local communities and jobs and education and health care and stop spending so much money on overseas wars, on surveillance programs we can't afford, and on the criminal justice system which is out of control. that's what i would do to bring our budget and tax priorities more in line with the needs of working families here in our state. >> third question is from sandra. she writes i would love to hear the candidates opinions on the millions of dollars being spent for both the senate race and the gube torell race by parties, especially when mainers are going hungry or without medication or without jobs. >> our campaign finance system is broken. we have a congress of millionaires and billionaires and people like me, the daughter of a

our guest from the american civil liberties union will court rulings on voting laws that may affect many races. health care reporter looks at the administration's handling of ebola in the u.s. we will take your calls, and you can join the conversation on facebook and twitter. journal" live at 7:00 a.m. eastern on c-span. >> monday night on "the communicators," three members of congress talk about their technology legislation. passed a law that makes it possible for the major broadcasters to give back some of their spectrum that they have had. it gives the fcc the authority to repackage spectrum and reallocated. under current law, the low-power television industry, they are granted licenses, but those are subject to availability of spectrum in the particular marketplace. iswhat i am concerned about

. >> reporter: this man from the american civil liberties union says the quarantine will deter medical from those infected in west africa. >> tracey hickox is now free after being detained for three years. unfortunately the mandatory quarantine policy remains in place. >> reporter: we weren't able to ask christie questions. >> i know she didn't want to be there. no one ever wants to be in the hospital, i suspect. i understand that. the fact is i have a greater, bigger responsibility to the people, the public. i think when she has time to reflect, she'll understand that as well. >> reporter: and officials here in new jersey are working with health officials in maine to determine if any self-quarantine is necessary for hickox, for her or her family in her home state of maine. live in newark, cydney long, nbc 10 news. >>> as we mentioned earlier, a 5-year-old boy in the bronx is being tested for ebola after developing a fever. these photos showing hazmat crews arriving at the boy's apartment building last night and carrying him out on a stretcher. officials say the boy returned from guine

democratic candidate is shenna bellows, the former executive director of the american civil liberties unionshe has not held elective office. welcome to you both. in the first segment, we are going to tackle broad topics. we are going to devote 4-5 minutes to each topic. we hope you will articulate your position as well as your differences with each other. shenna, the number one concern of our listeners and viewers is people are concerned about maine's economy and jobs. what will you do to improve the economy and jobs? >> thank you for hosting this. it is wonderful to be here in bangor. as i walked across maine, 350 miles, the number one issue that people said was jobs and the economy. i walked three miles. a farmer talked about investment in infrastructure. he sells heirloom potatoes across the country, but it takes him 20 minutes to get online. he said if we had broadband access, people like him could grow their businesses. people could connect with the global economy. infrastructure is number one. also, a fair tax and regulatory environment. >> what will you do to create better paying job

in alabama, the american civil liberties union is suing to block a law they say could force minors seeking abortion to stand trial. the law applies to minors who cannot safely obtain parental content -- consent for abortion, which is required in alabama. it allows the court to appoint a guardian for the fetus and would allow them to call witnesses to testify against the minor. brazil is holding presidential election sunday. dilma rousseff faces a challenge from marina silva, who served as the environment minister under luiz inÁcio lula da silva and became a candidate after her running mate died in a plane crash. marina silva group up in the amazon rainforest come a fought its devastation along rubber tapper chico mendes. supporters say she would become the world's first green president but as critics worry as an evangelical christian, she would implement right-wing policies. also note that her running mate has ties to agribusiness. tens of thousands marched in mexico city to mark the anniversary of the tlatelolco student massacre. days before mexico city hosted the olympics, government for

. >> the american civil liberties union of pennsylvania has criticized the new pennsylvania measure,g it "overbroad and vague," and unable to "pass constitutional muster under the first amendment." but that has not stopped governor corbett from saying he will sign it into law this afternoon. >> on monday, mumia abu-jamal spoke with noelle hanrahan about the passage of the so-called revictimization relief act in what could be one of his final media interviews for some time. >> it is amazing when you think about it because on two fronts, i should say, of course, the first front is constitutional. i mean, this is a blatant, naked violation of article one section seven of the constitution of the commonwealth of pennsylvania. which specifically grants the right of free speech to all commonwealth, and of course, the constitution of the united states, which fairly recently, and this v snopes case phelps case, he caused a great deal of emotional distress to veterans families. this is what he was supreme court said in snyder. they said the first amendment trumps emotional distress. that is re

. >> reporter: the american civil liberties union senior staff attorney mary katherine roper has beeng to get information about military gear inside pennsylvania police departments for months. >> you have information here, we were denied. >> reporter: those state records show the philadelphia police department has an armored truck and 255 automatic assault rifles. philadelphia police did not respond to our repeated requests to show you the equipment. they did say their automatic weapons have been converted to semiautomatic. a spokesman said the police department no longer has the armored truck, however, no one, not the philly police or state government could tell us where it went. >> my children are out on those streets. i don't want them facing the potential of military weapons in the hands of people who do not have military training. >> reporter: in montgomery county, abington township police fight mostly property crime. yet they also fight to keep their 1970s-built armored truck running. s.w.a.t. commander patrick malloy says it's been used to rescue shooting victims since they pic

. >> proposition 47 supported by the american civil liberties union teacher yawn and received major campaign contribution from both will he be rall and conservative groups. however this measure is opposed by a long list of law enforcement group including association of california police chef and district attorneys. >> alameda county da nancy says prop 47 goes too far. >> she believes the crimes covered by the measure sometimes deserve stronger punishment. and pros can youtors need discretion for each case. >> i don't understand why theft of a firearm should only be a misdemeanor. i don't understand why things like date rape drug or burglarize ago business is only a misdemeanor. >> she thinks the money saved is exaggerated. state giving counties millions of dollars to help rehabilitate felon transferred to county jail. but if those felon are reclassified as misdemeanor offender they won't be eligible for the help. >> i think that that puts news a very dangerous position in how much intervention we are going to give and really how we are going to protect victims. >> opponents worry prop 47 cou

. >> the american civil liberties union of pennsylvania has criticized the new measure, calling it "overbroadvague," and unable to "pass constitutional muster under the first amendment." we spoke to mumia abu-jamal on the phone last week about the new law. he was speaking to us from sci mahanoy in frackville, pennsylvania. >> how are you, amy? >> it is good to be with you. can you talk about where you are right now? describe your surroundings as you speak on the phone to us. >> as you can hear the i'm in the open area of half of a block. there are about 45 men sitting around playing cards, playing dominoes, playing chess, talking, some are reading, some watching television at a distant corner. this is population. block out phase, were you are out of your cell. >> so you are back in the news because of a bill that was just signed by pennsylvania governor tom corbett that would limit you ability to speak after just give a commencement address, the taped commencement address, to goddard. can you respond to the signing of this ill -- bill? >> i think is quite extraordinary that unconstitutional t

news for comedian louis black, who is now celebrity ambassador louis black thanks to the american civil liberties unioneing to be our celebrity ambassador on voting rights, louis. we'll try to make this photo shoot as painless as possible. >> no photo shoot is painless, but i'm happy to help. i mean, who is denying people the right to vote? >> you would be surprised. we're fighting people on the right to suppressed voting all over. like north carolina, that's 2 million people. >> if i could get you to look at the lens. >> why stop voting? >> voting early can change an event. here's a picture i carry around every time i get a chance to talk about early voting. look at that line. >> what is it, black friday? you would think the people of florida would want their voters to, like, vote? what's next, a poll tax? >> well -- >> no [ bleep ] way. >> voter i.d. like they tried to implement in wisconsin costs money. it essentially is a poll tax. and look what they made wisconsinites do just to get one of these poll cards. this is a document from the state of wisconsin which is supposed to show how easy it is to

she served as a fellow for the american civil liberties union and is on leave as a professor of civil procedure and constitutional law at the university of maryland school of law. she is a well-known voting rights litigator, civil rights strategist and an author of the book "on the courthouse lawn -- confronting the legacy of lynching in the 21st entury." hans von spakovsky is manager of the election law reform initative and senior legal fellow at the heritage foundation. he has worked on civil justice issues as senior corporate officer in the insurance industry. he served as counsel to the assistant attorney general for civil rights from 2002 to 2005 and was a member of the federal election committee for two years. he is co-author of the book -- "who is counting: how fraudsters and bureaucrats put your state at risk." he has testified before various estate and professional committees in favor of the constitutional rights of states to establish procedures for the conduct of their elections. a few ground rules. after our speakers make their presentations, we will open the floor to ques

>> this document and others like it had long been sought after by the american civil liberties union and other legal organizations and lawyers who were present clients who had been unjustly placed on the no-fly list. we saw an immediate impact from what this extremely principled and brave whistleblower dead in that it has only been used in court cases. a federal judge has to cleared the aspects of the watch listing program that disallows people from knowing their status on the watchlist to be unconstitutional. >> the existence of a second whistleblower is also confirmed at the end of laura poitras' new documentary citizenfour, about nsa whistleblower edward snowden. jeremy scahill has not discussed his source, but told -- and those are some of the headlines. this is democracy now, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman with aaron matÉ. >> welcome to all our listeners and viewers from around the country and around the world. we begin in canada, as it grapples with the aftermath of last week's gun attack on the nation's parliament in ottawa. on wednesday, a gunman n

she served as a fellow for the american civil liberties union and is on leave as a professor of civil procedure and constitutional law of the diversity of maryland school of law. she is well known voting right litigator and an author of the courthouse lawn -- confronting the legacy of lynching in the 21st century." he served as counsel to the assistant attorney general for civil rights from 2002 to 2005 and was a member of the federal election committee for two years. --is co-author of the book "who is counting?" he has testified before various estate and professional committees in favor of the constitutional rights of states to establish procedures for the conduct of their elections. a few ground rules. after our speakers make their presentations, we will open the floor to questions. let me remind you that only media and press club members may pose questions. when you will recognize, please identify your self and your organization before asking your question. i will turn over our proceedings to the first speaker, miss sherilyn eiffel -- miss sherilyn . >> i am delighted to talk about

proposition 47 is supported by the american civil liberties union, teachers unions and has received majorampaign contributions from both liberal and conservative groups. however, this measure is opposed by a long list of law enforcement groups including the associations of california police chiefs and district attorneys. alameda county's d.a. says prop 47 goes too far. she believes the crimes covered by the measure sometimes deserve stronger punishments and prosecutors need discretion for each case. >> i don't understand why theft of a firearm should only be a misdemeanor. i don't understand why things like date rape drugs or burglarizing a business should only be a misdemeanor. >> reporter: she thinks estimates of the money saved are exaggerated. she says the state is already giving counties millions of dollars to help rehabilitate felons who are being transferred to county jails. but if those felons are reclassified as misdemeanor offenders they won't be eligible for that help. >> i think that that puts us in a very dangerous position in how much intervention we are going to give and re

federal appeals court in new york city heard a case on the national security agency's collection of american's phone records. the american civil liberties union is suing to stop the program and have all the data deleted. the oral argument is an hour and 45 minutes. what viewers are about to see are not the merits of that program whether it's a good thing or bad thing, that's two reasons. one as a matter of substance, the issues before us start with legal issues about whether this court even has the jurisdiction to resolve any or all of the questions raised by the plaintiffs and then continue, the questions raised by the plaintiffs are not about whether the program is a good thing or a bad thing but about whether or not it's been authorized or perhaps forbidden by specific statutory provisions of congress and by specific provision of the constitution of the united states. that's what is before us. it's also not a debate as a matter of forum. the procedure here will involve lawyers making arguments. they will likely be interrupted and asked questions by the judges. that's not because we're rude or we don't want them to make their case in an uni

. >> the american civil liberties union is speaking out against the bill, the executive director of theu says this bill is written so broadly that it is unclear what behaviors is prohibited, essentially, any action by an inmate or former offender that could cause mental anguish could be banned by a judge. you cannot pass constitutional muster, under the first amendment, mike? >> we made it broad on purpose. bee want a judge to decide if the conduct that is being a appealed to the court ace pope eighth under the the rights of the first amendment and in prison. you know, danny lost his case. other crime victims have lost their voice. we are not telling a judge what to do. mike, that is what makes the hair stand up on than my head with the aclu on this we made it broad with the intention to get that balance and give victims that chance just like criminals do to be part of that system to have that chance to get back, and, legislator to decide or victim to decide, we want a sit judging to decide. >> what happens, it will be signed today at 13th and locust. and then would it be challenge? is

court in new york city heard a case last month on the national security agency collection of american phone records. the american civil liberties union is suing to stop the program and have all data deleted. the oral argument is an hour 45 minutes. >>> the court of appeals >>> please be seated everyone. good morning again. we're about to proceed here the case of american civil union. i thought i would say one thing. this case apparently is sufficient interest that it's being broadcast. i don't know who is going to watch it if anyone, but to the extent that it's going to be watched by people who aren't lawyers and aren't familiar with appellate argument, i thought i would say one thing about what is not likely to be seen here. this case is about the bulk data collection program operated by the national security agency. what viewer are about to see is not a debate on the merits of that program whether it's a good thing or bad thing. that's the two reasons. one as a matter of substance the issues before us start with legal issues about whether this court even has the jurisdiction to resolve any or all of the questions raised by the plai

sherrilyn ifill, as president of the naacp defense fund, she served as a fellow with the american civil liberties union and a voting rights attorney with the legal defense fund and is on leave as a professor of civil procedure and constitutional law at the university of maryland school of law. she is able well-known voting rights litigator and a civil rights strategist and author of the book, on the courthouse lawn, confronting the legacy of lynching in the 21st century. hans von spakovsky is manager of the election on reforming initiative and senior legal fellow fellow at the heritage foundation and he has worked on tort reform and civil justice in the insurance industry. he served as consul to the assistant attorney general for civil rights from 2002 until 2005 herriot and he was a member of the federal election committee for two years. he is co-author of the book, who's counting. how eurocrats put your vote at risk. he has testified before various committees in favor of the constitutional rights of state to establish procedures with the conduct of their elections. and if you roundels. after our spea

the national supreme court. up next, oral arguments from a lawsuit transmissioning michigan's bang ban on gay marriages. -- after that, oral argument and american civil liberties union versus clapper on the national security agency's collection of americans' phone records. and the conversation on cameras and the court, and other issues of supreme court transparency, and later, a discussion on judicial independence. on monday, the supreme court decided not the hear -- michigan was not among those states so it's ban on same-sex marriage was not affected. up next on cspan 3, the oral argument on michigan's ban on gay marriage. whether a district court can disregard a directly -- namely baker versus nelson, and the bigger picture, it's about what federal rights in the creation of a new federal constitutional right if that should be done through the amendment process or by the courts on the subsequent due process doctrine. so there's common ground on this case, but the u.s. constitution doesn't directly address same-sex marriage, seems to turn to the subject of due process. is whether or not the right that's being asserted is objectively, deeply rooted in this nation's h

the national supreme court. up next, oral arguments from a lawsuit transmissioning michigan's bang ban on gay marriages. -- after that, oral argument and american civil liberties union versus clapper on the national security agency's collection of americans' phone records. and the conversation on cameras and the court, and other issues of supreme court transparency, and later, a discussion on judicial independence. on monday, the supreme court decided not the hear -- michigan was not among those states so it's ban on same-sex marriage was not affected. up next on cspan 3, the oral argument on michigan's ban on gay marriage. whether a district court can disregard a directly -- namely baker versus nelson, and the bigger picture, it's about what federal rights in the creation of a new federal constitutional right if that should be done through the amendment process or by the courts on the subsequent due process doctrine. so there's common ground on this case, but the u.s. constitution doesn't directly address same-sex marriage, seems to turn to the subject of due process. is whether or not the right that's being asserted is objectively, deeply rooted in this nation's h

that occurred back in the mid-1980's when he took over the new york civil liberties union and that was over aids and the demands of many americanshat aids patients be quarantined. so he's very familiar with this kind of hysteria or panic, and he immediately offered to go out threatennew jersey and the state of new jersey with a lawsuit. of course, chris christie back down and released kaci hickox so she could go home to maine and new york's governor andrew cuomo then backed off a little bit on his own quarantine saying people returning health workers from west africa could be quarantined at home. but the reality is, these two governors are still insisting that even know you may not have symptoms, you can be quarantined under their powers in new york state and new jersey, and now the governor in maine for the tea party candidate, facing a tough reelection on tuesday, has also insisted that she be quarantined. and she's continuing to defy the quarantine and basically, welcoming a lawsuit, which norm siegel feels she is a very good chance, there is a lawsuit ,iled, to get her to maintain that he believes he can win. >> kaci hickox

the afghan war. that's a very important area. and that's where there is very, very solid basis here, as grover will point out. there is a lot of collaboration between left/right, american civil liberties union and right leaning groups. in the substantive area, they are quite remarkable convergences. i sometimes i think half of what the government does is shovel out subsidies, handouts, giveaways privileges, economic privileges in the marketplace and bailouts. this is called crony capitalism by the right. called corporate welfare by us. that's a huge slice of the federal budget. the patriot act comes up for confirmation, repeat, next year. maybe there will be a struggle instead of just rubber stamping it as it has been renewed twice by rubber stamp. we have on perhaps us t s isote issues. we have collaboration, left/right wants to audit the pentagon. $800 million, unaudited every year. not really the way a business would run it. that's why you lose 9 billion here, 6 billion there. as senator dirksen said, it adds up to real money. there's no accounting. there's also left/right on procurement. why not establish standards for efficiency and for national goals, like controlling pollution, advan

she served as a fellow for the american civil liberties union and is on leave as a pfe