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Let's get back to the ongoing FISA bill, shall we. I mean, we night as well get back to it because the Republicans most certainly aren't going to do it.
Today was supposed to have been a bipartisan working meeting on FISA but the Republicans stopped their staff from attending the meeting. The meeting was about modernizing the FISA, and Majority Leader Hoyer had something to say about the Republicans not allowing their people to be present.
“I am disappointed that House and Senate Republicans apparently instructed their staffs not to participate in today’s bicameral meeting on modernizing the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. The decision to not participate, coupled with their vote against an extension of their bill - the Protect America Act - only serves to reinforce the perception that Republicans prefer to have a political issue rather than a strong new FISA bill in place as quickly as possible. Certainly Republicans do not really believe that the role of the House is to simply rubberstamp whatever bills the Senate passes.
“I am hopeful that Republicans will reconsider and join us in crafting a bipartisan FISA bill that protects our nation and our civil liberties. It is time to come together and work in the best interests of our nation’s security.”
The Judiciary Committee chimed in with their own statement also, as did the House and Senate Chairmen.
“In what should have been a bipartisan, bicameral meeting, staff members of the House and Senate Judiciary and Intelligence Committees met today to work in good faith to reach a compromise on FISA reform. As we have said, we are using this week to work on a compromise that strengthens our national security and protects Americans’ privacy. Unfortunately, we understand our Republican counterparts instructed their staffs not to attend this working meeting, therefore not allowing progress to be made in a bipartisan, bicameral way. While we are disappointed that today’s meeting could not reflect a bipartisan effort, we will continue to work and hope Republicans will join us to put our nation’s security first.” Source
For one thing, I think that for Intelligence Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) to be a part of this statement is sort of a two-faced put-on by this man. Let us not forget that Rockefeller did vote for amnesty for the telecoms and if he and a few other democrats had done their jobs right in the first place, this shit wouldn't be an issue in the first place!
