Heavily redacted records obtained by Cato Institute senior fellow Patrick Eddington reveal that Postal workers spied on the American public. From September 2020 through April 2021, Postal Inspectors tracked second amendment advocates and used covert social media surveillance called the Internet Covert Operations Program (ICOP). A report said the Biden administration ordered the spying.
Report: Team Biden ordered Postal Service inspectors to track gun rights activists https://t.co/wHkDMY2raw
— World Tribune (@WorldTribune) September 27, 2022
According to the FOIA released, heavily redacted bulletin, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service tracked the “peaceful armed protests” of Virginians demonstrating at a Second Amendment rally in Richmond for “Lobby Day.”
The bulletin said,
“The gathering lasted approximately two hours, with members identifying themselves as affiliates of the Proud Boys, Boogaloo Bois, and Last Sons of Liberty,” the postal inspectors’ bulletin continued, “Counter-protesters from the Black Lives Matter movement also attended. With heavy law enforcement presence, the demonstrations stayed peaceful in nature.”
Eddington has called on Congress to investigate and on the Postal Service to lift the redactions on the records. Americans should understand how they are being spied on. Additionally, the Post Office Inspector General said he believed the snooping was outside their authority, and he was uncertain if proper legal approval had been given for the spying.
"American Stasi: U.S. Postal Service Monitored Mail of Gun-Rights Activists, Trump Supporters"
USPS Inspectors monitored the mail & internet usage of gun rights and Trump supporters from September 2020 to April 2021. The Post Office IG said this was outside legal law enforcement.— Gray Wolf (@graywolf442) September 27, 2022
Eddington went on to warn people, letting them know they should not assume the Postal Service is the only federal agency snooping on their social media accounts.