Preamble Of The Constitution Essay

501 Words3 Pages

In order to determine the extent to which the U.S. government has the duty to monitor internet content, it is imperative to first understand that this is a complex issue. With complex issues, there is never a simple answer that is purely black or white. The answer lies in a grey area where the government must protect the safety and well being of its constituents while also guaranteeing their right to privacy. The Preamble of the Constitution outlines the goals that the founding fathers had for the United States, which are still very relevant to contemporary issues of the United States. Among other goals, it states that the government has the duty to promote the General Welfare of its citizens, meaning clearly that the government must support the health, well-being, and happiness of its constituents. The General Welfare of every American was put into question on September 11th, 2001 when Islamic terrorists directly attacked the United States on American soil taking lives, invoking fear, and causing destruction. To respond to this attack, the Bush Administration launched its War on Terror which among other things gave greater power to intelligence agencies and …show more content…

Privacy is not explicitly mentioned in the Constitution of the United States, but courts have held that citizens have personal privacy from government interference guaranteed by the fourth, fifth, and fourteenth amendments of the Constitution. For example, in the case Katz v. United States, federal agents used recording devices to listen to an illegal conversation by Katz on a payphone. The Supreme Court held that the agents violated the fourth amendment because the amendment also extended to informational privacy. The findings of Katz v. United States can also be applied to the monitoring of the internet by the government in that citizens should have a reasonable expectation of