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Born at the Crest of the Empire

Friday, June 09, 2006

Specter covers the turd

Arlen Specter is doing it again.
The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee has proposed legislation that would give President Bush the option of seeking a warrant from a special court for an electronic surveillance program such as the one being conducted by the National Security Agency.

Sen. Arlen Specter's approach modifies his earlier position that the NSA eavesdropping program, which targets international telephone calls and e-mails in which one party is suspected of links to terrorists, must be subject to supervision by the secret court set up under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).

The option? So, in other words, Arlen Specter has proposed a law that is completely non-binding after his previous statements of outrage. But it actually gets worse.
Another part of the Specter bill would grant blanket amnesty to anyone who authorized warrantless surveillance under presidential authority, a provision that seems to ensure that no one would be held criminally liable if the current program is found illegal under present law.

Blanket Amnesty! So, the majority party is allowed to break the laws so long as they hold their majority, and Arlen Specter will bend his "high principles" if there is a threat to his campaign money.

After his cancer scare Specter seemed to have a brief window of candor, courage, and honesty. I guess his ethics went into remission, too.

(I know that's across the line but I'm pissed.)

Just for context remember two other recent actions in the last month helping the Bush administration in complete contradiction to Specter's professed "beliefs," first voting the gay marriage amendment out of committee even while admitting being totally opposed to it, second, the complete turnabout on having telecom officials testify in the NSA hearing.

I thought this quote summed it up nicely.
In the past, Democrats have been frustrated by Specter, who they say raises their hopes with tough talk against the White House but dashes them with disappointing action. In April, Senate minority leader Harry Reid labeled Specter a "moderate Republican . . . whenever you don't need him."

2 Comments:

  • I don't see how that's "across the line", Mike. Seems to me it's simply an acute observation. How else are we to interpret Specter's actions? Has there EVER been such a "law" introduced in Congress, i.e., not a law but a "suggestion"?

    By Blogger Motherlode, at 4:23 AM  

  • I meant the cancer crack and the use of the word remission. That's a litle tasteless.

    But, you're right, he deserves far more vitriol for the acts he's done.

    Perhaps the largest Bush admin defender, torture, renditions, spying, is my state's shame, sen. John Cornyn, but at least he's not kowtowing to the administration against his own principles. He's a schmuck, but at least he's an honest schmuck. The stuff Speter's pulling is about the very worst of politics.

    Mike

    By Blogger mikevotes, at 6:22 AM  

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