Russ Feingold is an idiot. He gave this statement supporting his opposition to The Patriot Act:
"Yesterday morning, Republican and Democratic Senators blocked a flawed bill that extended parts of the Patriot Act that are set to expire without fixing the fundamental problems with the law. Nobody wants these parts of the Patriot Act to expire — we want to fix them before making them permanent, by including important protections for the rights and freedoms of innocent American citizens.
With a few modest but critical improvements, like making sure that when the government seeks library records it has to show that those records have some connection to a suspected terrorist or spy, we can give the government the powers it needs while also protecting the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens. The President can sign a bill into law tomorrow to reauthorize the Patriot Act if he will agree to the bill that the Senate unanimously passed in July or he could extend the law for a short period so negotiations can continue.
The President’s shocking admission that he authorized the National Security Agency to spy on American citizens, without going to a court and in violation of the Constitution and laws passed by Congress, further demonstrates the urgent need for these protections. The President believes that he has the power to override the laws that Congress has passed. This is not how our democratic system of government works. The President does not get to pick and choose which laws he wants to follow. He is a president, not a king.
On behalf of all Americans who believe in our constitutional system of government, I call on this Administration to stop this program immediately and to fully cooperate with congressional inquiries and investigations. We have had enough of an Administration that puts itself above the law and the Constitution.
Here’s a little background Feingold fails to mention, or can’t comprehend:
In the Supreme Court’s 1972 Keith decision holding that the president does not have inherent authority to order wiretapping without warrants to combat domestic threats, the court said explicitly that it was not questioning the president’s authority to take such action in response to threats from abroad.
Four federal courts of appeal subsequently faced the issue squarely and held that the president has inherent authority to authorize wiretapping for foreign intelligence purposes without judicial warrant.
In the most recent judicial statement on the issue, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review, composed of three federal appellate court judges, said in 2002 that "All the … courts to have decided the issue held that the president did have inherent authority to conduct warrantless searches to obtain foreign intelligence … We take for granted that the president does have that authority."
The passage of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act in 1978 did not alter the constitutional situation. That law created the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court that can authorize surveillance directed at an "agent of a foreign power," which includes a foreign terrorist group. Thus, Congress put its weight behind the constitutionality of such surveillance in compliance with the law’s procedures.
Now, before people start bashing me for being Republican, that article was written by John Schmidt, who served for President Bill Clinton from 1994 to 1997 as an associate attorney general.
What it basically says, and I’ve heard this more than once, is that Bush ( Clinton ) had the authority to order wiretaps BEFORE The Patriot Act was passed. Nearly 30 years before in fact. And, he NOW has the same authority.
Russ Feingold is an idiot. What’s scary is how many people believe him. He ditched our anti-terrorism laws, putting us at risk, and accomplished NONE of his objectives. He is an idiot.
Technorati Tags: National Politics
Tags: National Politics
4 Comments »
on 21 Dec 2005 at 5:44 pm 1.progdem said …
no you are an idiot. learn to read. Feingold at no point claims that the Patriot Act gave the President the power to do this (in particular if you were paying attention you would realize that Feingold doesn’t think Bush has the power to do this without a FISA warrant). He said that the fact that he did this shows that he did this shows the need to rein him in. The administration’s case for the patriot act relies in part on the congress trusting him that he will not abuse the parts of the bill that the Senators in question object to, like the library provision. the wiretap scandal shows that Bush isn’t to be trusted, and that is all that Feingold is saying.
two, the court case in question does not grant any power. the court simply declined to categorically deny the president that power. ‘not questioning’ is not the same as ‘granting’. That should be obvious.
on 21 Dec 2005 at 6:07 pm 2.Moonage
said …
Sir, I think your rational is exactly the same as Feingold’s. Bush never stated Congress had to trust him, he said he consulted with them. There’s a big difference between someone having to trust, and being aware. The fact Feingold is connecting FISA to The Patriot Act issue IS my gripe. Both him and Schumer both cited the New York Times article as the key issue in totally damning the entire Patriot Act, which had nothing to do with the Patriot Act as FISA predated Patriot Act by nearly 30 years. All “the wiretap scandal” shows is that you have an attitude and aren’t willing to disassociate fact from rhetoric. There is no scandal. Bush, as has been reiterated by most legal scholars on both sides of the aisle, was acting within his legal rights. The only “scandal” is the one the New York Times created just in time to give Feingold and Schumer the excuse they needed to oppose The Patriot Act and not be called traitors again.
Now, if I’m the idiot you say I am, do you honestly think Bush will no longer have the ability to wiretap suspected terrorists after 12/31/05 if the Patriot Act retires? Will Feingold have gained ANYTHING in regards to what he is complaining about? Will the country be safer because of his false argument?
Go ahead, make my day.
on 21 Dec 2005 at 9:20 pm 3.StormWarning
said …
Excuse me, but anyway connecting the Patriot Act with the controversy over the NSA/FISA “stuff” does nothing but confuse the issue. They are not connected…at least not literally.
on 21 Dec 2005 at 9:35 pm 4.Moonage
said …
That’s my point exactly. I think Feingold’s is using the hysteria over the “wiretap controversy” to justify his hardcore stand on The Patriot Act. Either he is confused, or more likely, he’s hoping others are. Either way, I’m calling his bluff. What does killing The Patriot Act accomplish in regards to “The President’s shocking admission”?