On the recordJune 3, 2015
I thank the chairman for yielding time to me. Madam Chair, I would like to try to interpret what has been said in a simpler way. Assume that the builders in the United States get together and they are given a new requirement: that when they build a new house, the Federal Government wants the option to have a master key to a back door--not only a back door but a secret back door so that at some time down the road, maybe the Federal Government would like to enter that secret back door for some purpose. And that is what this amendment is preventing. Just like we wouldn't let the Federal Government have a key to our back door or require builders to put a master key in all of the new homes that they build in the country and give the key to the government, we would never allow that. That would certainly be in violation of the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution. All this amendment does is it prevents technology--when technology is growing at a rapid rate--to prevent the Federal Government from requiring companies that make cell phones, for example, that there be an ability of the Federal Government to go in the cell phone and look around, even without the knowledge of the person who owns the cell phone. This is very similar to the bill that passed unanimously last night. So I urge the adoption to this amendment as well. I thank the chairman for allowing me to speak on the gentleman from Kentucky's amendment, since he ran out of time.
