Friday, February 15, 2008

Exactly

(via Atrios again, but emphasis mine):

Glennzilla:
The issue is not "intelligence gaps." Rather, as McConnell candidly admits, the "real issue" is "liability protection for the private sector." To take them at their word, George Bush and Mike McConnell are putting the nation at risk in order to ensure that AT&T and Verizon do not have to be held accountable in a court of law for having broken the law. Think about how twisted and corrupt that calculus is.
I don't actually believe this is about protecting the telcoms; it's about protecting themselves. And given the fact that a supine press has been relatively unconcerned that the president had been illegally spying on Americans without warrants as required by law for years, one wonders just what it is they feel the need to hide.

3 comments:

heydave said...

I was listening to a radio blab show about this matter today, and the same thought crossed my mind. The government can still, and always has been able to, get a warrant from a judge to go after suspects. The whole Jack Bauer lightening quick response has been bullshit. All they would have to do is show a single example of how they saved us from that oh so imminent danger to silence critics. So why ARE they doing this so obviously yet on the sly?

AnnPW said...

Because they're lying, crooked bastards?

vizavis said...

"I think there is probably joy throughout the terrorist cells throughout the world that the United States Congress did not do its duty today," said Representative Ted Poe, Republican of Texas.

When constitutional rights are overtly disregarded how long will we stand? So, Mr. Ted "Hang 'Em" Poe, what you are saying is that Congress has a "duty" to screw the citizens in order to protect them? Terrorists may indeed feel joyful as they watch America implode on itself. They won't have to lift a finger. Without constitutional rights, America will simply self-destruct. As for me, "give me liberty or give me death."