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As is par for the course, the Democrats in the House pushed their eavesdropping bill through two committees today and they made only minor changes to the bill. Once again, the Bush Crime Family ( GOP ) is waiting to trash this bill because it doesn't give some of the Bushco contributors ( U.S. telecommunications companies ) retroactive immunity from lawsuits. There are around 40 pending lawsuits naming telecommunications companies for alleged violations of wiretapping laws. Bush has said that he will not okay this bill as long as the said companies can face actions against them for doing something illegal in the first place! This is the Bush that we all love and hate. Pathetic piece of shit.
Bush had the nerve to tell reporters the bill would "take us backward" in efforts to thwart terrorism. Here we go with the usual GOP fear card once again.
The measure advanced by the House Judiciary and Intelligence committees left out the immunity provision Bush wants. Democrats also voted down Republican attempts to tailor the legislation more to the administration's liking.
The committees even strengthened the bill slightly by establishing a new threshold for when the government has to seek a court order to listen in on American communications with foreigners. They also gave the secret court set up 30 years ago to oversee government surveillance a little more power to monitor intelligence agencies' compliance with court orders.
Michigan Rep. Pete Hoekstra, the senior Republican on the Intelligence panel, said Republicans had been left entirely out of the creation of the bill. It was delivered to them on Monday, a federal holiday when few were working.
"This is a deeply flawed bill," Hoekstra told reporters after the committees acted.
He and other GOP lawmakers said the bill gives too much power to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to oversee intelligence activities and will bog down intelligence agencies with administrative burdens. They charged that the measure extends constitutional protection to phone calls by terrorists overseas, takes rights away from telecommunications companies, and prohibits legitimate surveillance of other countries.
Maybe we should all call Rep. Hoekstra and tell him that it isn't the bill which is flawed but it is him and the rest of the republicans who still insist on trying to scare our citizens into believing everything that they say. The fear card isn't working anymore. Get use to it.
I dare the Democrats in the House or the Senate to decide on a compromise bill after Bush trashes this one. Some of you punks on both sides of the aisle may want to remember that your job review comes up in 2008. Many of you are failing.
