Armey Opposes 'Big Brother' on Highways

Armey Opposes 'Big Brother' on Highways

NewsMax.com Wires
May 8, 2001

WASHINGTON -- House Majority Leader Dick Armey, angry over the use of radar cameras to enforce speed limits on federal roads, will send a letter later Tuesday to the Interior Department decrying the practice as a "step toward a Big Brother surveillance state," The Washington Times reported.

"I'm committed to doing what it takes to make our roads safer, but not at the cost of our fundamental rights," Armey writes. "Likewise, I am concerned that this may be seen as a step toward a Big Brother surveillance state, where the government monitors the comings and goings of its citizens."

Calling it a "spy camera program," the Texas Republican said the cameras constitute an "encroachment upon our liberty" and could become a significant privacy concern for drivers who use federal parkways.

Richard Diamond, a spokesman for the congressman, said Armey's main concern is a potential increase in violations of privacy.

"Where does it go from here?" Diamond asked. "Where does it end? What's next for us: seat belt cameras? Cell phone usage cameras? Anti-smoking cameras?"

Specifically, Armey's staffers point to the two cameras the National Park Service recently installed along the George Washington Memorial Parkway in Northern Virginia, the newspaper said.

Armey does not travel on the parkway in his typical daily commute, his staffers said, but does use it to go to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Va.

A Sept. 1 release by the agency announcing the new plan for the parkway said it believed "that speeding and aggressive driving are serious problems and that a reliable supplemental speed enforcement tool is necessary."

The parkway, which winds from Mount Vernon in Fairfax County 38.3 miles northwest to the Capital Beltway, has speed limits ranging from 40 to 50 mph.

Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:

Privacy