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ALERT: Call the Commerce committee! 1-800-962-3524
checking my files and verifying the number this morning, I find that there
is an active 1-800 number to call Congress. (Don't know who'se it is, but
it reaches the Congressional switchboard...)
The Capitol Switchboard can be reached at 1-800-962-3524.
At 12:42 AM 9/11/96 -0400, Voters Telecommunications Watch wrote:
>========================================================================
>
> SENATE COMMERCE COMMITTEE VOTE TOMORROW IN QUESTION
> WHITE HOUSE STALLING; THE NET CAN SAVE THE VOTE
>
> OFFICES ARE RECEIVING 'LOTS OF CALLS'
> MAKE A CALL TO THE COMMERCE COMMITTEE
>
> September 11, 1996
>
> Please widely redistribute this document with this banner intact
> until September 30, 1996
>
>________________________________________________________________________
>CONTENTS
> The Latest News
> What You Can Do Now
> Background / What To Expect This Week
> Description of S.1726, Pro-CODE Bill
> Chronology of Pro-Crypto Legislation
> For More Information / Supporting Organizations
>
>________________________________________________________________________
>THE LATEST NEWS
>
>Sometimes things work out better than imagined. This was the feeling
>tonight as I waded through my email from people all over the country that
>called the commerce committee. This was the feeling as I heard from visitors
>to one Senator's office who, while waiting for a few minutes in the lobby,
>listened to the receptionist take two quick calls from netizens calling
>about the bill.
>
>Receptionist, cutting the caller off: "S.1726? Yes, I'll pass that along
>to the Senator, thanks. We've been getting a lot of calls."
>
>Another netizen emailed us saying that he also called his Representative.
>It turns out this Rep. has some friends who have co-sponsored HR 3011, the
>House version of Pro-CODE. The calls and elevated publicity from this phone
>campaign have convinced him to consider co-sponsoring HR 3011.
>
>This is great, but our success has mobilized the anti-crypto forces
>into action as well. The Clinton Administration, who has long opposed
>the right of citizens to use non-Clipper encryption, has begun working
>behind the scenes to make sure that the vote on Pro-CODE (S.1726) never
>happens.
>
>To have the Senate Commerce committee go on record that encryption exports
>should be loosened, against the will of the Administration, would be
>an embarrassment to the White House. They have begun pushing hard to
>pressure Democratic Commerce Committee members to put the brakes on the
>bill, and do everything they can to prevent the vote this Thursday.
>
>To see the business community, the industry, and the public line up the
>Administration would be extremely hard to take and still seem
>credible.
>
>It's crucial that we continue to make noise and ring those phones. By
>pulling enough favors with members of the Senate Commerce Committee, it's
>possible that the White House could prevent this vote from happening.
>
>WE MUST NOT LET THAT HAPPEN. Appropriately forward this to everyone you
>know until the expiration listed above. Go to work, bug your neighbor
>in the cubicle or office next to you. Have they called yet? Bug them
>until they do. Call the rest of the members you haven't gotten around to
>yet.
>
>And don't forget to sign the petition at http://www.crypto.com/petition/ !
>
>[Rest of alert is the same from last time]
>________________________________________________________________________
>WHAT YOU CAN DO NOW
>
>It's crucial that you call the Commerce committee members below and
>urge them to pass S.1726 out of committee without amendments. (This is
>also known as a "clean" bill.) Any opportunity for amendments (even if
>they are good) opens us up to the possibility of hostile amendments
>that could restrict the use of encryption even further than today's
>abysmal state. It could even prohibit the use of encryption without
>Clipper Chip-like key 'escrow' technology, which includes built-in
>surveillance and monitoring functionality.
>
>1. Call/Fax the members of the Senate Commerce committee and urge
> them to pass S.1726 out of committee "cleanly". Do not use email,
> as it is not likely to be looked at in time to make a difference
> for the markup on September 12th.
>
> Use the sample communique and directory listing below to make it a
> simple TWO MINUTE task.
>
>2. Sign the petition to support strong encryption at
> http://www.crypto.com/petition/ ! Join other cyber-heroes as
> Phil Zimmermann, Matt Blaze, Bruce Schneier, Vince Cate, Phil Karn, and
> others who have also signed.
>
>3. Between now and Wed. September 12, it is crucial that you call all
> these members of Congress.
>
> P ST Name and Address Phone Fax
> = == ======================== ============== ==============
> D SC Hollings, Ernest F. 1-202-224-6121 1-202-224-4293
> D MA Kerry, John F. 1-202-224-2742 1-202-224-8525
> D HI Inouye, Daniel K. 1-202-224-3934 1-202-224-6747
> D KY Ford, Wendell H. 1-202-224-4343 1-202-224-0046
> D WV Rockefeller, John D. 1-202-224-6472 1-202-224-7665
> D LA Breaux, John B. 1-202-224-4623 1-202-228-2577
> D NV Bryan, Richard H. 1-202-224-6244 1-202-224-1867
> D ND Dorgan, Byron L. 1-202-224-2551 1-202-224-1193
> D NE Exon, J. J. 1-202-224-4224 1-202-224-5213
> D OR Wyden, Ron* 1-202-224-5244 1-202-228-2717
>
> R SD Pressler, Larry* 1-202-224-5842 1-202-224-1259
> R MT Burns, Conrad R.(*sponsor) 1-202-224-2644 1-202-224-8594
> R AK Stevens, Ted 1-202-224-3004 1-202-224-2354
> R AZ McCain, John 1-202-224-2235 1-202-228-2862
> R WA Gorton, Slade 1-202-224-3441 1-202-224-9393
> R MS Lott, Trent* 1-202-224-6253 1-202-224-2262
> R TX Hutchison, Kay Bailey 1-202-224-5922 1-202-224-0776
> R ME Snowe, Olympia 1-202-224-5344 1-202-224-1946
> R MO Ashcroft, John* 1-202-224-6154 1-202-228-0998
> R TN Frist, Bill 1-202-224-3344 1-202-228-1264
> R MI Abraham, Spencer 1-202-224-4822 1-202-224-8834
>
> * supporter or cosponsor. The bill also enjoys broad bi-partisan
> support from members not on the committee including Senators Leahy
> (D-VT) and Murray (D-WA).
>
>4. Here is a sample conversation:
>
> SAMPLE PHONE CALL
> You:<ring ring>
> Sen:Hello, Senator Mojo's office!
>
> You:
>
>SAY I'm calling to urge the Senator to pass S.1726, the
>THIS-> Burns/Leahy/Pressler bill, S.1726 when the committee votes on
> it on Thursday. It's critical to the future of privacy, security,
> and electronic commerce on the internet.
>
> Sen:Ok, thanks!<click>
>
> IF THEY SAY
> "The Senator has concerns about the bill",
> please answer,
> "Please try to work these issues out as it moves to the Senate floor,
> but passage out of committee will send an important signal to
> the Administration."
>
>5. To help us measure the effectiveness of the campaign, WE NEED TO HEAR FROM
> YOU. Please tell us who you called, and how they sounded. We'll be
> passing this information to folks in D.C. who can help apply pressure
> where needed.
>
> $ Mail [email protected]
> Subject: I called so-and-so
>
> Hey, I called Sen. Mojo. He sounded iffy, call in the
> reinforcements.
> ^D
>
>6. Forward this to your friends and colleagues in appropriate forums
> until the date of expiration at the top. Forward a copy of this to
> your Internet Service Provider as well, and ask them to put the following
> text in their message of the day (motd), or on their WWW page:
>
> ALERT ALERT ALERT ALERT ALERT ALERT ALERT ALERT ALERT ALERT ALERT
>
> The U.S. Senate will be voting on a proposal to encourage
> better security on the Internet on Thu Sep. 12th. Your help is
> needed to call Congress. See http://www.crypto.com/ for more
> details.
>
> ALERT ALERT ALERT ALERT ALERT ALERT ALERT ALERT ALERT ALERT ALERT
>
>________________________________________________________________________
>BACKGROUND / WHAT TO EXPECT THIS WEEK
>
>For the past 3 years, Cyber-Rights Activists, citizens, and industry
>leaders have been working hard to reform US encryption policy.
>
>Support has been building behind several legislative proposals this
>year because they send a clear signal to the Administration about the
>need for security and privacy in the Information Age. The digital
>revolution is currently being held hostage by the White House's Cold
>War restrictions on privacy-enhancing encryption technology.
>
>Now, with Congress less than a month away from adjournment, everyone
>who supports encryption and privacy is working to see this bill leave
>committee in order to send a clear message to the White House that they
>are on the wrong side of the encryption issue. Although this bill may
>not become law this year, its passage out of committee will be a
>landmark event that will clearly tell the White House that the
>Congress, the public, and the computer industry care about security and
>privacy, and need strong, reliable encryption technology in order to
>make the Internet a viable platform for commerce, education, and
>democracy.
>
>Success for our side is not certain, and the next week is not without risks.
>On September 12th, the Senate Commerce committee will hold a "markup",
>where the bill is examined, voted on, and if there are enough votes,
>passed out of committee. Two things could happen:
>
> -the committee could pass the bill as written,
> -the committee could pass the bill with amendments.
>
>Any amendments are not likely to be friendly, and in particular, quiet
>sources have told privacy activists that the Clinton Administration has been
>readying a legislative assault on your right to use encryption for several
>weeks now. A Clipper-like amendment could be attached to the bill if
>our side does not have enough votes to block all amendments.
>
>It is crucial that all netizens who consider privacy and security important
>take a moment to call members of the Commerce Committee right now and
>urge them to vote S.1726 out of committee without amendments.
>
>________________________________________________________________________
>DESCRIPTION OF S.1726, PRO-CODE BILL
>
>Privacy-enhancing encryption technology is currently under heavy restrictions
>kept in place by the White House. Encryption that is currently allowed to
>be exported is not sufficient to protect confidential information. This
>policy acquires an "Alice-in-Wonderland" quality when one realizes that
>strong encryption products are available abroad both for sale and for free
>download off the Internet.
>
>The Pro-CODE Act resolves to:
>
>1. Allow for the *unrestricted* export of "mass-market" or "public-domain"
> encryption programs, including such products as Pretty Good Privacy and
> popular World Wide Web browsers.
>
>2. Requires the Secretary of Commerce to allow the less restricted export
> of other encryption technologies if products of similar strength are
> generally available outside the United States, roughly up to DES
> strength.
>
>3. Prohibits the federal government from imposing mandatory key-escrow
> encryption policies on the domestic market and limiting the authority
> of the Secretary of Commerce to set standards for encryption products.
>
>________________________________________________________________________
>CHRONOLOGY OF PRO-CRYPTO LEGISLATION
>
>9/12/96 (scheduled)
>Senate Commerce committee will hold markup of S.1726 and hopefully pass it
>out of committee with no amendments.
>
>7/25/96: Full Senate Commerce committee holds positive hearings on S.1726.
>FBI Director Louis Freeh testifies along with many cyber-luminaries.
>Hearings are cybercast Internet Cyber-Rights activists with HotWired
>and WWW.Crypto.Com. You can see the photos, read the testimony, and
>listen to the audio transcript at http://www.crypto.com/events/072596/
>
>6/26/96: Senate subcommittee holds positive hearings on S.1726. Hearings are
>cybercast Internet Cyber-Rights activists with HotWired and WWW.Crypto.Com.
>You can see the photos, read the testimony, and listen to the audio
>transcript at http://www.crypto.com/events/062696/
>
>5/2/96: Bi-partisan group of Senators introduce Pro-CODE Act, which would
>free public-domain encryption software (such as PGP) for export, free much
>commercial encryption for export, and reduce the government's ability to
>push Clipper proposals down the throats of an unwilling public. Original
>sponsors include: Senators Burns (R-MT), Dole (R-KS), Faircloth (R-NC),
>Leahy (D-VT), Murray (D-WA), Pressler (R-SD), and Wyden (D-OR).
>
>3/5/96: Sen. Leahy (D-VT) and Rep. Goodlatte (R-VA) announce encryption bills
>(S.1587/H.R.3011) that significantly relax export restrictions on products
>with encryption functionality in them, as well as free public domain software
>such as PGP (Pretty Good Privacy).
>
>________________________________________________________________________
>FOR MORE INFORMATION / SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS
>
>There are many excellent resources online to get up to speed on crypto
>including the following WWW sites:
>
>http://www.crypto.com http://www.privacy.org http://www.eff.org
>http://www.cdt.org http://www.epic.org http://www.vtw.org
>
>Please visit them often.
>
>The following organizations have signed onto this alert:
>
> Center for Democracy and Technology
> Electronic Frontier Foundation
> Electronic Privacy Information Center
> Voters Telecommunications Watch
>
>________________________________________________________________________
>End alert
>========================================================================
>
>
Jim Bell
[email protected]