To the Representatives and Senators of the 113th Congress,

We are Restore the Fourth. We are a coalition of citizens, across the political spectrum, seeking a restoration of the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution as a meaningful and powerful piece of US law.  We aim to see it serve as it was originally intended: "to protect the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures". In the modern world, these papers and effects must include electronic records, files, and information. Recent events have made clear that systematic violations of this right have occurred over the last 12 years. In response, we have prepared a list of goals outlining our mission.  Additionally, we have drafted a list of actions that we insist must be taken in order to remedy these violations and restore the fundamental Fourth Amendment rights of the American people.

Restore the Fourth seeks to:

1. Raise public awareness of the unconstitutional surveillance methods employed by the U.S. government.
	The American people have a right to know the actions of their government.  Accountability is the foundation of 		 democracy, and it is necessary to ensure the protection of the Constitution and the people it serves.

2. Ensure that the scope of government surveillance is constitutional, limited, clearly defined, and enforced.
 	Surveillance activities must be conducted within the legal bounds defined by the Constitution and US law. In order to effectively defend the rights of the people, these bounds must be clearly stated and enforced.

3. Establish a clear and transparent system of accountability for the United States' intelligence community.
	A clear system of accountability is required in order to properly enforce restrictions on surveillance activities. This system must be open and visible to the American people in order to ensure that proper protocols are followed.


Restore the Fourth asserts that the U.S. government must:

1. Conduct a congressional hearing and a criminal investigation into the extent and constitutionality of domestic government surveillance programs.
	A full investigation must be conducted to determine the scale and legality of the actions taken by the US intelligence community. This must include revealing the scope and duration of surveillance programs, as well as examining the institutional factors that allowed their creation. The methodology and results of the investigation must be made public.

2. Repeal the USA PATRIOT Act and impose clear constraints on the powers granted by FISA.
	Many legislative actions taken since 9/11 have allowed an expansion of government surveillance powers in the name of safety and security. It is vital that these powers be reined in to stay within the boundaries set out by the Constitution.

3. Hold those involved in government surveillance programs accountable to stringent and transparent judicial oversight.
	Accountability is paramount to ensure such violations do not happen in the future. Those responsible for violating the Constitution must be brought to light and their conduct reviewed by a duly appointed judge to determine the legality of their behavior.



4. Create an independent and transparent supervisory body to ensure that government surveillance activities are constitutional.
	Another component of accountability required to prevent further violations of the rights of the American people is the establishment of an independent, nonpartisan body to monitor surveillance activities carried out by the intelligence community. This body must be transparent and accountable to the American people.

5. Remove James Clapper from his position as Director of National Intelligence.
	Director James Clapper gave misleading or false testimony before the Congress in response to inquiries by Senator Ron Wyden in a March 12, 2013 hearing. These statements are a breach of the public's trust, if not a violation of US law. As such, a full investigation must be conducted into Mr. Clapper's knowledge and testimony, as well as the legality of his actions.

We, the American people, demand that our government adhere to its Constitutional limits and respect our wishes. If those currently in office cannot or will not rectify the troubling violations of our rights, we will act swiftly to replace them.  We urge you to act on these requests in order to end the violation of our rights and liberties, and to uphold the Constitution as you swore to do when you took office:

"I do solemnly swear that I will support the Constitution of the United States." -Congressional oath of office

Sincerely,
Restore the Fourth
www.restorethefourth.net