Van Os Speaks Out On Surveillance Bill

The other day, I wrote about how the Senate Democrats caved in and passed Bush's ridiculous and unconstitutional act that would allow him to eavesdrop of anyone anywhere anytime. Now, Texas progressive David Van Os has spoken up on the matter. Frankly, his words are better than mine, so I reprint them here for your edification:

Tuesday, February 12, 2008, was a dark day in the United States Senate for the people and Constitution of the United States of America. The Senate passed a bill to enshrine permanently the disgraceful law enacted in August 2007 to expand the powers of the President to engage in electronic surveillance of private communications without judicial warrants; in effect, to legalize the illegal wiretapping program that the criminal Bushite administration first hid from the public, then admitted to in 2005 after being exposed.

Not only does the bill give the criminal president the power to perform actions for which he should have already been impeached and criminally prosecuted; not only does the bill trample on the Fourth Amendment of the Bill of the Rights of the U.S. Constitution; but also, it deprives citizens of due process of law in the courts by giving the giant telephone companies retroactive immunity for illegally wiretapping telephones and invading their customers' privacy rights.

As the New York Times put it, "After more than a year of wrangling, the Senate handed the White House a major victory on Tuesday by voting to broaden the government's spy powers and to give legal protection to phone companies that cooperated in President Bush's program of eavesdropping without warrants."

Shamefully, 19 Democratic Senators, led by Intelligence Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller, voted with the Republican lemmings to pass the bill. Did the voters who went to the polls in 2006 to repudiate Bushite policies expect Senate Democrats to continue to condone the criminal president's assault on the Bill of Rights and the rule of law? I don't think so.

There is still hope. The House of Representatives passed a different bill that does not grant retroactive telephone company immunity, and that does not give the criminal president as much expanded power as the Senate bill. The House and Senate bills now go to conference committee. FLOOD NANCY PELOSI WITH YOUR EMAILS DEMANDING THAT THE HOUSE NOT GIVE IN TO THE SENATE BILL.

David Van Os