The Senate Has a Warrant to Stand Up
David Sirota has what looks like a shrewd idea for overcoming the House's bad judgment in voting to give the president the power to instate warrantless surveillance. The Senate can step up, specifically about appropriations:
Any Senator can offer a floor amendment to the Defense Appropriations Bill or the Commerce/Justice/State Appropriations Bill banning the use of government funds for warrantless wiretaps. Similarly, any House or Senate lawmaker on the Appropriations Committee can offer an amendment in these bills' conference committees to do the same thing. If such an amendment became law, the warrantless wiretapping program may still remain technically "authorized" by Congress (though unconstitutional, of course), but the White House would be prohibited from actually using it.
Senators, the next call is yours. And it would be interesting to see how Senators Clinton and Obama would vote, if such an attempt came to a vote.
Comments (15)
How about instead of all that the dems in congress show some nutsack and vote against the damn wiretapping?
August 8, 2007 9:52 AM | Reply | Permalink
This is a great idea. But I think Professor Slaughter would say you're not being bipartisan enough.
So glad you ran this piece today. It's actually a very serious rebuttal of Slaughter's piece.
thosethingswesay.blogspot.com
August 8, 2007 9:59 AM | Reply | Permalink
The House Dems have already flopped this one, so the question is, What's next?
Todd Gitlin
August 8, 2007 10:00 AM | Reply | Permalink
Excellent. Fits with Anon's ideas as well.
August 8, 2007 11:58 AM | Reply | Permalink
I'm sure there are dozens of good ideas regarding how to fight the Bush gang, but if we don't put pressure on spineless Democrat Senators, like those that recently voted to give Bush more spying power on us, all the good ideas will go nowhere.
I called my Senator Robert Casey twice regarding his recent vote allowing Bush to expand his wiretapping powers, calling his office in DC and his local office to express my "extreme disappointment" with his vote. An onslaught of calls from constituents is the only thing that will move them becasue these votes are political cover your ass votes...in this case, to avoid being called soft on terror by the Repugs, who will sling the charge regardless.
By the way, I also called my Rep, Dem Patrick Murphy twice and thanked him for voting against this bill.
August 8, 2007 1:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Pass a new bill repealing the piece of $@#$# they just passed.
August 8, 2007 4:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
1 in 5 House Dems. A bit less than 1 of 3 Senate Democrats. Oh! what to do?
Refuse to vote? Vote Green? Vent on someone's website and take comfort in having done that? Use the stick AND THE CARROT and give your reps an ear full?
Duh.
Kevin Russell Cook
August 8, 2007 9:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
You know what? No matter what the Congress would be able to do (considering the lack of non-partisan support by the Republicans) nothing will make any difference.
The bottom line is this: Bush has already proven he doesn't give a G.D. what the written law says is legal and isn't legal.
If he doesn't like the law or he disagrees with it he'll just exert his "unitary executive privilege/authority" and interpret it the way HE wants to so he can continue to do WHAT he wants.
No amount of written laws will make a difference.
That argument didn't work for Nixon, but with the compliant and loaded ideological judges who have made it to not only the USSC but also to the federal courts the scales are tipped enough so that the Bushies have complete control over the Justice Department and rule of law no longer exists.
Let's not delude ourselves people. The Republikonutzis decided a long, long time ago that they are of the mindset that operates on: Do as I say, not as I do.
I don't mean to sound so pessimistic, but we need to face reality. Bush's actions are what we must judge him on not what he says.
August 9, 2007 6:40 AM | Reply | Permalink
I just called Feingold's office and suggested that he do just this.
Thanks for the heads up.
August 9, 2007 10:39 AM | Reply | Permalink
Staying home, or voting Green produces nothing worse than voting for the Democrat who votes with the farthest right wingnut to affirm the theft of our constitutional rights.
August 9, 2007 4:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
The passing of the FISA bill was a travesty. I don't care if 80% of the D's voted against it...it still passed. And if the Democratic Party wanted to block it they could have, but they didn't. And have gone on record saying the have no problem with ignoring the Constitution. For the past 7 years the D's have watched the Bush Junta wipe their asses with the Constitution. They finally had a chance to do something about it and all they said was "No problem. Carry on..."
Can procedural manuevers be used by the Senate to block this? Maybe and I hope the forces that believe in what the Constitution says use every tool at their disposal to undermine the FISA bill. But my main concern isn't that they had a chance to put an end to it and they refused to...which bothers me profoundly. What really bothers me is not only didn't they block this administration's unconstitutional actions...THEY ACTUALLY GAVE THE ADMINISTRATION MORE POWER TO BREAK THE LAW!!!!
I hope that all the D's candidates for President weigh in on this issue. I want to hear about how they will undo the damage done to the separation of power and hold all executive branches from here on accountable to the people through our representatives in congress. I want to hear how the illegal FISA Bill and the Patriot Act will be scrapped and new laws that do not violate the Constitution will be enacted instead. I want to hear the D's say that they repudiate and denounce illegal wars of aggression...and will not unilaterally and unprovoked attack another sovereign nation ever again. Rescind the AUMF. And return us to being a country that respects the rule of law both home and abroad.
And if I don't hear all of this '08 might be the first election I have not voted in since I became eligible to vote.
August 10, 2007 9:04 AM | Reply | Permalink
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As per Todd's usual MO ... Partially correct ...
At least the following House Dems flopped ... And does anyone see a pattern in this list?
Jason Altmire (4th Pennsylvania)
John Barrow (12th Georgia) Blue Dog
Melissa Bean (8th Illinois) Blue Dog
Dan Boren (2nd Oklahoma) Blue Dog
Leonard Boswell (3rd Iowa)
Allen Boyd (2nd Florida) Blue Dog
Christopher Carney (10th Pennsylvania) Blue Dog
Ben Chandler (6th Kentucky) Blue Dog
Rep. Jim Cooper (5th Tennessee) Blue Dog
Jim Costa (20th California) Blue Dog
Bud Cramer (5th Alabama) Blue Dog
Henry Cuellar (28th Texas)
Artur Davis (7th Alabama)
Lincoln Davis (4th Tennessee) Blue Dog
Joe Donnelly (2nd Indiana) Blue Dog
Chet Edwards (17th Texas)
Brad Ellsworth (8th Indiana) Blue Dog
Bob Etheridge (North Carolina)
Bart Gordon (6th Tennessee) Blue Dog
Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (South Dakota) Blue Dog
Brian Higgins (27th New York)
Baron Hill (9th Indiana) Blue Dog
Nick Lampson (23rd Texas) Blue Dog
Daniel Lipinski (3rd Illinois)
Jim Marshall (8th Georgia) Blue Dog
Jim Matheson (2nd Utah) Blue Dog
Mike McIntyre (7th North Carolina) Blue Dog
Charlie Melancon (3rd Louisiana) Blue Dog
Harry Mitchell (5th Arizona)
Colin Peterson (7th Minnesota) Blue Dog
Earl Pomeroy (North Dakota) Blue Dog
Ciro Rodriguez (23rd Texas) Blue Dog
Mike Ross (4th Arkansas) Blue Dog
John Salazar (3rd Colorado) Blue Dog
Heath Shuler (11th North Carolina) Blue Dog
Vic Snyder (2nd Arkansas)
Zachary Space (18th Ohio) Blue Dog
John Tanner (8th Tennessee) Blue Dog
Gene Taylor (4th Mississippi) Blue Dog
Timothy Walz (1st Minnesota)
Charles A. Wilson (6th Ohio) Blue Dog
~OGD~
August 10, 2007 2:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
~
They'll all be debating this stinker again in March when it "sunsets" ... Right in time for the heaviest primary runs.
Can you imagine all these southern Blue Dogs Dems if they had voted against this bill trying to counteract why they didn't vote for something called Protect America Act of 2007 when the Rove kool-aid talking points would be simply three words: "Islamofascists' Dirty Bombs"?
I don't like it, but that's the way the partisan politcal cards are being played.
~OGD~
August 10, 2007 2:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
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Libertine:
Your points are well taken by me here.
Although political reality sucks, as I commented upthread, here's how I see it.
Like I say there, I don't like it but there it is.
~OGD~
August 10, 2007 2:50 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hey OGD...howya doing?
Yeah I hear you about the political reality but I am still very frustrated. I expected the D's to make some stands against the Junta but understood it is impossible to fight every fight. This was one of those issues where I felt a principled fight was warranted. But like usual since they retook congress all I saw from the House D's was capitulation under the guise of "bipartisanship". :-(
August 10, 2007 4:06 PM | Reply | Permalink