Mitch McConnell's Cloture Vote Loses:FISA Debate To Continue!!

  From  DK

Update 5: Cloture defeated by a vote of 48 ayes to 45 nays! Debate continues on the FISA bill. Take a bow, this is a tremendous victory and a big humiliation for Bush and his Republican enablers. - smintheus
Update 6: Now the Senate is proceeding to the second cloture vote, this time to vote on a bill to extend the current temporary FISA bill for 30 days beyond its expiration date on Feb. 5. Republicans are trying to block cloture on this bill. McConnell was blubbering on the floor that the bill is no good because Bush has threatened to veto it. He doesn't seem to realize that there are a lot of Dems who'd like to call Bush's bluff: If Bush vetoes the extension, then it shows he doesn't think the FISA bill is essential - or else he cares more about giving telecoms amnesty than he does about protecting America. - smintheus
Update 7: The second cloture vote fails as well (by the same margin, 48 'aye', 45 'nay'). So we're back to debating the original bill. - smintheus

  I would say the the voices of the American citizens has been heard in the United States Senate by some true " Patriots " for once! And it is about fucking time!

   We did have one Democrat who voted  " nay " but then changed her vote to " aye". That would have been Mary Landrieu. I guess that her spine needed some more vacation time.

  That crying sound that you hear is both George Bush and Dick Cheney, down in his bunker.

   CORRECTION: There were actually 4 Democrats who voted on the Republican side. They were Senators Pryor, Ben Nelson, Lincoln, and Landrieu.

Technorati Tags: Mitch McConnell, FISA, cloture vote, George Bush, Mary Landrieu

Senator Clinton's Statement On FISA

   By way of  Firedoglake at DK

    Hillary Clinton's statement on the FISA legislation:

Today, I will vote against Republican efforts to shortchange the debate on the FISA Amendments Act, important legislation that would modernize our surveillance laws and give our nation's intelligence professionals the tools they need to fight terrorism and make our country more secure. Rather than allow the Senate the opportunity to consider important amendments to this vital legislation, Republicans are instead blocking meaningful debate on this bill by playing procedural games, choosing instead to score cheap political points at the expense of our Homeland Security.

This legislation deserves a thorough debate. Several provisions - including those which would have a profound impact on the civil liberties of Americans - need to be the subject of careful deliberation. For example, the bill under consideration gives telecommunication companies blanket retroactive immunity for their alleged cooperation in the administration's warrantless wiretapping program. I continue to believe that a grant of retroactive immunity is wrong, and I have cosponsored Senator Dodd's amendment to remove that provision from the bill. The Bush Administration has blatantly disregarded Americans' civil liberties over the past seven years, and I simply will not trust them to protect Americans' privacy rights. With the temporary Protect America Act set to expire on February 1st, I strongly believe that we need to pass balanced legislation that protects our civil liberties and the rule of law while giving our law enforcement and intelligence agencies the tools they need to protect our country.

Technorati Tags: Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, FISA, FISA Amendments Act