Since 9/11, there's been a consistent collision in the United States between fighting terrorism and protecting the civil liberties of American citizens both through law and through judicial oversight.
That collision moves into stark contrast this week with the U.S. Senate's vote on the extension of the Protect America Act (PAA). The PAA was put into place last year as an update to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, also known as FISA.
For the last several years, telecommunications companies have turned over to the federal government the records of millions of Americans. These records were released under no warrant or judicial oversight. Only President Bush, his closest advisors and the telecom companies know the extent of this warrantless surveillance.
Right now, the U.S. Senate is deciding whether or not to extend the Protect America Act (PAA). The current version, supported by President Bush and Republican members of Congress, would provide legal amnesty for those companies that may have illegally turned over records. This amnesty for telecom companies would shield them from any legal accountability for violating our civil rights.
On my campaign website, I've had a petition up for the past week asking individuals to tell Gordon Smith to reject this immunity for telecommunications companies. Please stop by and sign the petition. Let Gordon Smith know that Americans will not sit still while their right to privacy is eroded.
Congress must stand up and protect the rights of American citizens. They must restore the balance of power by returning oversight to the judiciary. The courts, not the President, should decide whether these actions were legal.
The guy defineitely deserves a smack down for his willful ignorance, so a shout out to Speaker Merkley for taking this shot, as he has otherwise had to put his campaign on hold while running the February special session of the Oregon legislature.
I signed the petition and I hope others join in. We not only need to put pressure on Gordon Smith, we also need to work at unseating him. If you were our current Senator here in Oregon, we'd have another progressive standing up for our rights. I hope we will have you representing us in 2008!
Retroactive immunity, particularly for spying, is an offense to the very premise that this great nation was founded upon.
The overwhelmingly obviously right thing to do is to NOT give immunity, and to launch a full investigation of this crime, which would help discover evidence of other crimes committed by this Bush administration. However, congress has shown its hand already -- there is not enough support in congress to override this immunity measure; if there were, there would be no need for all these exceptional efforts by just a few ethical senators and representatives, who are outnumbered heavily in congress.
I hope I'm proven wrong on this point, but I'm connecting the logical/realistic dots and this is where they lead. Our congress has become an equal accomplice in Bush's crimes. Immunity will be given.
Yep, this is why liberalism and business shall never meet.
Are you sure in your heart of hearts that this is not just about feeding more business to our poor, neglected and malnourished trial lawyers?