An encryption joke circulating on Capitol Hill goes, "I'd tell you why I can't vote for this bill, but then I'd have to kill you." It's a sad sign of what happened in the House this fall, where the Security and Freedom through Encryption Act, or SAFE, ran into stiff opposition among legislators who bought the FBI and NSA line that encryption threatens national security. Key among the bill's detractors was FBI director Louis Freeh.
In addition to Freeh's cloak-and-dagger lobbying tactics, the director testified before Congress that without access to plain text of encrypted data, he would be "out of the law enforcement business." Meanwhile, the White House, an unwavering proponent of key escrow, has been noticeably silent, leading some observers to speculate that the administration is letting the FBI do its dirty work. Jerry Berman, director of the Center for Democracy and Technology, agrees, concluding, "The FBI is a stalking horse for the administration."
-Rebecca Vesely
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