We Are About To Make A Terrible Mistake

For the last hour or so I've been watching the eloquent speeches of Senators Feingold, Dodd, Bingaman and Specter (with minor notes from others) denouncing the current FISA bill. Those few that have read the bill know that what the President signs will inevitably shred the Fourth Amendment and do (more) irreparable harm to our Constitution and our country. Those that vote against the amendments and for the bill will say that they are doing the right thing, but whatever comes out of their mouths will be lies they hope you will swallow, like these two below.

From Get FISA Right:

MYTH: Opposition to the compromise bill is because of the desire to punish telephone companies

Source(s): A good-enough spy law, Nancy Soderberg, Los Angeles Times, July 5, 2008; Flip-flop accusations get too much mileage, Ruth Marcus, Erie Times-News, July 5, 2008
Soderberg says, "the compromise bill's opponents -- mostly Democrats -- want also to punish the telecommunications companies that answered President Bush's order for help." This is a gross misrepresentation of the reasons for opposing the "compromise" bill. Arguing before the US Senate for maintaining the balance struck by the original FISA bill, Russ Feingold said, "Based on the history of, and potential for government abuses, Congress decided that it was not appropriate, not appropriate, for telephone companies to simply assume that any government request for assistance to conduct electronic surveillance was legal." (Audio)
FACT: Opposition to the FISA compromise is based on concern for fundamental civil liberties

MYTH: Telco immunity covers wiretapping suspected terrorists

Source(s): President Bush can still dream, can't he?, Kathleen Parker, South Bend Tribune
Parker says, "The bill effectively grants immunity to phone companies that wiretap suspected terrorists." The compromise bill grants broad immunity to telephone companies for any wiretapping done at the request of the government, including numerous alleged instances of wide-net gathering of all communications, both foreign and purely domestic. To suggest that immunity only covers "suspected terrorists" is a laughable statement, unless you accept that all Americans and foreigners are suspected terrorists.
FACT: Immunity covers all illegal wiretapping, including purely domestic communications

In a few minutes from now the Senate will vote on the amendments to strip retroactive immunity and the bill itself. Senator Dodd is trying to shame his fellow Senators at the moment for ignoring the Constitution and he is dead on. It is a shame that any Senator who should represent Americans before telecommunication corporations to vote for this bill. These men and women will sign their names to one of the worst pieces of legislation in recent memory.....and they will be held accountable, even if they think no one is paying attention....they would be wrong, because we are watching them.

Chris Dodd Stands Up To Bush And His Telecom Friends

This is the type of passion we need to see this week in the Senate as it debates and attempts to pass the terrible FISA legislation that George Bush so desperately desires:

Feingold And Dodd Vow To FISAbuster

Nothing was more deplorable (this month) for the Democrats than to let FISA go through the House with retroactive immunity. Pelosi, Hoyer and dozens of others forgot about their duty to their constituents and the Constitution and gave a free pass to the telecommunication companies that violated the law and let George Bush off the hook for masterminding these crimes against America. Moreover, the bill obliterates the Fourth Amendment and gives the government unprecedented power to legally spy on citizens of a supposedly free country.

Now the bill goes to the Senate and our chances aren't that great. Barack Obama did the politically centrist thing and endorsed the House bill, so counting on him to put an end to this isn't likely. However, there are at least two good men in the chamber that do care, and they are ready to filibuster this thing straight into the next Congress and hopefully make it gone for good.

From RawStory:

In a last-ditch attempt to fix a surveillance bill critics say would essentially legalize President Bush’s warrantless wiretapping program, Sens. Russ Feingold (D-WI) and Chris Dodd (D-CT) have promised to filibuster the bill as long as it offers telecommunications companies retroactive immunity.

“This is a deeply flawed bill, which does nothing more than offer retroactive immunity by another name. We strongly urge our colleagues to reject this so-called ‘compromise’ legislation and oppose any efforts to consider this bill in its current form. We will oppose efforts to end debate on this bill as long as it provides retroactive immunity for the telecommunications companies that may have participated in the President’s warrantless wiretapping program, and as long as it fails to protect the privacy of law-abiding Americans,” the senators said in a joint statement Tuesday.

“If the Senate does proceed to this legislation, our immediate response will be to offer an amendment that strips the retroactive immunity provision out of the bill. We hope our colleagues will join us in supporting Americans’ civil liberties by opposing retroactive immunity and rejecting this so-called ‘compromise’ legislation.”

Filibustering this bill shouldn't be too hard as long as the members remain committed. There isn't much time before the July 4th recess and once the Senate gets back there is a lot of bills to get in order. If this has the possibility of tying up the Senate for weeks, Reid might just put the bill off for good, at least for the 110th Congress. They key is to push the bill off this year and then do it right once Obama is President next year.

Obama Speaks Out On FISA Legislation

As the head of the party (technically starting at the convention) Barack Obama has tremendous say over legislation that is being debated and more so with respect to the Senate as of now (since he is one of the 100). Today the House passed an awful piece of FISA legislation that is a capitulation to George Bush, so lets take a look at what our nominee said.

From Barack Obama:

"Given the grave threats that we face, our national security agencies must have the capability to gather intelligence and track down terrorists before they strike, while respecting the rule of law and the privacy and civil liberties of the American people. There is also little doubt that the Bush Administration, with the cooperation of major telecommunications companies, has abused that authority and undermined the Constitution by intercepting the communications of innocent Americans without their knowledge or the required court orders.

"That is why last year I opposed the so-called Protect America Act, which expanded the surveillance powers of the government without sufficient independent oversight to protect the privacy and civil liberties of innocent Americans. I have also opposed the granting of retroactive immunity to those who were allegedly complicit in acts of illegal spying in the past.

"After months of negotiation, the House today passed a compromise that, while far from perfect, is a marked improvement over last year's Protect America Act.

"Under this compromise legislation, an important tool in the fight against terrorism will continue, but the President's illegal program of warrantless surveillance will be over. It restores FISA and existing criminal wiretap statutes as the exclusive means to conduct surveillance – making it clear that the President cannot circumvent the law and disregard the civil liberties of the American people. It also firmly re-establishes basic judicial oversight over all domestic surveillance in the future. It does, however, grant retroactive immunity, and I will work in the Senate to remove this provision so that we can seek full accountability for past offenses. But this compromise guarantees a thorough review by the Inspectors General of our national security agencies to determine what took place in the past, and ensures that there will be accountability going forward. By demanding oversight and accountability, a grassroots movement of Americans has helped yield a bill that is far better than the Protect America Act.

"It is not all that I would want. But given the legitimate threats we face, providing effective intelligence collection tools with appropriate safeguards is too important to delay. So I support the compromise, but do so with a firm pledge that as President, I will carefully monitor the program, review the report by the Inspectors General, and work with the Congress to take any additional steps I deem necessary to protect the lives – and the liberty – of the American people."

So basically he thinks its ok but we need to get the retroactive immunity pulled out. I completely agree with him on the immunity, we need to hold these people accountable and allow the rule of law to be held supreme over any particular person's (like George Bush) rule. As for the other part, while I trust Barack Obama more with my constitutional rights, George Bush is still in office and there will be other Presidents after Obama leaves. What we need is to leave FISA the way it is and not mess with something that wasn't broken before Bush came through, stomping on every cherished idea we hold dear.

Congress Compromises The Constitution

I wasn't surprised that every single Republican in the House voted to spit on the Constitution and give the telcos (and George Bush) a get out of jail free card. Spying on American citizens without cause and with no regard for the fourth amendment isn't shocking considering Bush's record thus far. What was sad, dismaying and atrocious was that more half of the Democratic caucus went along with it and have the audacity to claim it is a good bill.

From FireDogLake:

...and the drip, drip, dripping away of our civil liberties continues. The vote was 293 Yays, 129 Nays. As Glenn says:

Today, the House leadership has set aside a grand total of one hour to debate the FISA/amnesty bill, and gave its members less than 24 hours from the time it was released yesterday until they have to vote on it today. That's the same bill which the NYT this morning calls "the most significant revision of surveillance law in 30 years." They're going to enact massive changes to our spying laws without having the slightest idea what they're voting on. All they know is that the President demanded this, and that's enough, because -- as Kit Bond says -- "when the government tells you to do something, I'm sure you would all agree that I think you all recognize that is something you need to do." In this formulation, "the government" means "The President."

You can register your disgust here...we're well over $250,000 and climbing....

UPDATE: The vote tally on this is not yet up on the House website. But I've confirmed the numbers that the total votes was as follows: 293 yes -129 no. Also that the majority of the House Dems voted no - 105 voted yes, 128 voted no. As soon as there is a full vote tally, will get a direct link up and running for everyone.

UPDATE #2: Vote tally just went up for the roll call vote on HR 6304. You can find the full list of yays and nays here.

Well at least my Congresswoman didn't vote for it, if that is any consolation for the constituents of NY-14. Still, everyone here on the East Side of New York, clear across to the west side of San Diego will suffer from this legislation. Congress collectively told us that our Bill of Rights doesn't matter and that they really don't care what we think about retroactive immunity for lawbreakers.

Congressman Wexler Stands Up To FISA Capitulation

As I said earlier, the deal hatched in Congress by the Democratic leadership was ominous but not set in stone until it gets voted on tomorrow. Therefore there is some, albeit slim, maneuvering room to try and thwart this despicable legislation before it is allowed into George Bush's dirty hands. While conservative Democrats and those in the leadership may try to bend over for George Bush, there are plenty that aren't. One of those is Congressman Robert Wexler.

From Congressman Wexler:

I cannot in good conscience support the so-called FISA “compromise” bill, as the only thing that is really being compromised is our civil rights.

In spite of the earnest hard work of many Members of Congress, the President has continued to demand that Congress rubber-stamp his illegal wiretapping program.

Every American wants to protect our country from terrorists; but, the President is not asking for tools to thwart terrorists. He is demanding unchecked power. He expects the Congress to throw out even the most modest, expedited court review on the absurd premise that a specially designed court with over 30 years of experience handling surveillance requests is suddenly going to bring our nation’s intelligence operations to a standstill.

The rights of everyday Americans are at issue here, and full accountability needed. A court that is given full and appropriate review of the particular circumstances in each case is the only appropriate venue for making decisions about immunity for actions that may or may not have violated the civil liberties of some individuals.

In addition, while I am sympathetic to the difficult position telephone and Internet service providers, who may have thought they were doing their patriotic duty, the fact remains that I simply cannot support offering retroactive immunity. I have had the opportunity to view some of the documents in question, and I can say that my position on this subject is unchanged.

I will continue to support the March 14th House bill that preserves the appropriate court review of all surveillance of US citizens and gives judges the discretion to review all the necessary documents related to telecom lawsuits without offering blanket immunity.

- Congressman Robert Wexler

I don't know about having sympathies for the telephone and ISPs, but he is right on the issue. There is no compromise in that legislation, only capitulation. It'll be a sad day if this passes, because it is blatantly wrong and immoral. Imagine if you broke the law and everyone knew you did so, you'd go to jail depending on the severity of the crime, right? Not so in this case, helping the right people (the Bush Administration) can get you off scot-free. This is unacceptable in our democracy, and I'm glad there are people like Congressman Robert Wexler that will fight to stop this. Since he blogged this on DailyKos, I sure hope he knows about how to stall using this other excellent DailyKos-frontpaged article.

Pelosi And Hoyer Bend Over For Bush And Telco Amnesty

Much to the chagrin of many Democratic House members and all Americans that respect the Constitution, the Democratic leadership and many conservatives on both sides of the aisle are putting the finishing touches on a bill that will give the telcos the immunity they want. George Bush is a happy man today, because despite his abysmal ratings as a President, the cowardly Democrats still bent over for his willful disregard of the laws in our country. Along with his accomplices (AT&T, Verizon, etc) he broke the law and spied on Americans, not caring about their fourth amendment rights. Instead of holding him and the companies accountable, Congress is just going to rewrite the law so it'll be legal, retroactively.

From TPM:

From the Wall Street Journal:

WASHINGTON -- After more than a year of partisan acrimony over government surveillance powers, Democratic and Republican leaders have agreed to a bipartisan deal that would be the most sweeping rewrite of spy powers in three decades. The House is likely to vote on the measure Friday, House aides said.

Removing the final barrier to action on the measure, which has been hashed out in recent weeks by senior lawmakers in both parties, House Democratic leaders decided to allow a vote on the bill, despite the opposition of many in their party.

The new agreement broadens the authority to spy on people in the U.S. and provides conditional legal immunity to companies that helped the government eavesdrop after the 2001 terrorist attacks, according to congressional aides in both parties.

Late Update: The deal-maker was offering immunity to the telecom companies who have already participated in the program.

Critical to sealing the deal was a compromise that would grant conditional immunity to telecommunications companies for assistance they provided from September 2001 through January 2007. If the companies can show a federal district court judge "substantial evidence" they received a written request from the attorney general or head of an intelligence agency stating the president authorized the surveillance and determined it to be lawful, the cases against them will be dismissed.

We haven't heard what "conditional" means.

Conditional means that as they long as they show the judge a note that George Bush said it was ok to spy on Americans for him, then they are in the clear. Basically this a free pass, a get out jail free card and a smack in the face to law-abiding citizens everywhere. These companies have hordes of lawyers that knew the wiretapping orders were against the law, but they decided to break the law anyway because the President said it was ok and that he'd have their back if anything went down. Not only does he have them covered, he has the cowardly, spineless Democratic leadership to help him with it.

Now the vote on the bill is actually tomorrow, so there is technically is still time before this becomes law. However, the chances of changing the minds of enough Democrats in time is a slim possibility. Regardless, make sure to call your Congress member and tell them not to vote for this shameful legislation.

McCain Gets "Mavericky" On The Fourth Amendment

John McCain talked on Tuesday about how he disagreed with the President to try and convince his critics that he won't be Bush's third term. He backed that up with dissing a Bush fundraiser for Congressional candidates (not money for him of course). Political theater aside, John McCain really is another George Bush. He wants to continue his tax cuts, his wars and now he wants to continue shredding the Constitution by making it a-ok to illegally wiretap American citizens without a warrant.

From The NY Times:

WASHINGTON — A top adviser to Senator John McCain says Mr. McCain believes that President Bush’s program of wiretapping without warrants was lawful, a position that appears to bring him into closer alignment with the sweeping theories of executive authority pushed by the Bush administration legal team.

In a letter posted online by National Review this week, the adviser, Douglas Holtz-Eakin, said Mr. McCain believed that the Constitution gave Mr. Bush the power to authorize the National Security Agency to monitor Americans’ international phone calls and e-mail without warrants, despite a 1978 federal statute that required court oversight of surveillance.

Mr. McCain believes that “neither the administration nor the telecoms need apologize for actions that most people, except for the A.C.L.U. and trial lawyers, understand were constitutional and appropriate in the wake of the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001,” Mr. Holtz-Eakin wrote.

And if Mr. McCain is elected president, Mr. Holtz-Eakin added, he would do everything he could to prevent terrorist attacks, “including asking the telecoms for appropriate assistance to collect intelligence against foreign threats to the United States as authorized by Article II of the Constitution.”

I guess in their minds, Article II trumps the Bill of Rights, especially the one that prohibits "unreasonable searches and seizures." Just like under George Bush, Article II trumps everything, including the checks and balances system set up to prevent the President from becoming too powerful. Our Congress has failed recently to rein in George Bush's abuses of the Constitution, but now it is the people's turn to ensure that another Bush-like Presidency with John McCain does not occur. This year the people want change and there is nothing to believe in when you have John McCain up in front of an audience....unless perhaps if they were a bunch of telecom executives.

No One Wants To Hire ex-Atty Gen Gonzales

It has been a few months since Alberto Gonzales stepped down amid heavy public pressure. You know things are bad when Mr. George "Loyalty-first" Bush lets one of his cabinet members go. Even though he wasn't impeached for his crimes by a Congress still looking for its spine, it seems that karma has a way of getting around to everyone.

From The NY Times:

WASHINGTON — Alberto R. Gonzales, like many others recently unemployed, has discovered how difficult it can be to find a new job. Mr. Gonzales, the former attorney general, who was forced to resign last year, has been unable to interest law firms in adding his name to their roster, Washington lawyers and his associates said in recent interviews.

He has, through friends, put out inquiries, they said, and has not found any takers. What makes Mr. Gonzales’s case extraordinary is that former attorneys general, the government’s chief lawyer, are typically highly sought.

A longtime loyalist to George W. Bush dating to their years together in Texas, Mr. Gonzales was once widely viewed as a strong candidate to be the first Hispanic-American nominated one day to the Supreme Court. A graduate of Harvard Law School, he carried an impressive personal story as the child of poor Mexican immigrants.

Impressive personal story aside, Mr. Gonzales decided to sell his soul to make it to the big leagues under George Bush. He helped to push for torture, spying on Americans and many, many other illegal or illicit items against either U.S. citizens or people around the world affected by the Bush Administration. Unlike living inside the bubble of the White House, now he must deal with the real world and many in it see him for the scoundrel he is. No attorney in his or her right mind would add an award-winning ex-Attorney General to their firm.

The FISA Fight Continues, Bush Starting To Stumble

You won't believe this but the Democrats (in the House at least) are trying to take advantage of the President's ridiculous, fear-mongering arguments. Granted, the formation of a spine in the Democratic caucus is still in its early stages but it is definitely taking shape. Today, in ten minutes, at 3PM Eastern Daylight Time, the House will take up H.R. 3773, which Bush had the following to say about.

From The Washington Post:

This week House leaders are finally bringing legislation to the floor. Unfortunately, instead of holding a vote on the good bipartisan bill that passed the United States Senate, they introduced a partisan bill that would undermine America's security. This bill is unwise. The House leaders know that the Senate will not pass it. And even if the Senate did pass it, they know I will veto it.[...]

Companies that may have helped us save lives should be thanked for their patriotic service, not subjected to billion-dollar lawsuits that will make them less willing to help in the future. The House bill may be good for class action trial lawyers, but it would be terrible for the United States.[...]

The American people understand the stakes in this struggle. They want their children to be safe from terror. Congress has done little in the three weeks since the last recess, and they should not leave for their Easter recess without getting the Senate bill to my desk.

Fear, fear and more fear. Please Mr. President, the people of this country have been seeing through your mindless rhetoric for quite sometime now. Thankfully the Democratic House sees that the people realize it, and are acting in kind.

From The Politico:

“Once again, the President continues to try to bully the Congress and mislead the American people on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act,” said Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) in a statement put out just minutes after the president’s.

“He refuses to accept that under our system of government, neither the President nor the telecommunications companies gets to decide which laws to follow and which to ignore.” House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said the president's comments "demonstrate an almost complete misreading of this important bill" and that the House bill provides all of the tools the intelligence community needs to protect the country.

That is all Bush is. A bully who misleads the people so that he can get his way and make good on corporations that helped him violate the law. Their lawyers knew what they were getting into and the only thing they have to count on is the President shielding them (and him of course) from being held accountable. He will continue to do this no matter what it takes, because escaping the consequences of his (and others) actions is paramount to respecting the rule of law and therefore, the Constitution of our country.

H.R. 3773 will do more than just protect our country from terrorists, it will help protect us from tyrants.

Robo-Calls From Osama

Ah, the twisted genius of Stephen Colbert and his deviant band of writers:

How To Liberate A Billboard

The Billboard Liberation Front is a non-violent group that is seeking to inform the public on behalf of companies and the government that violate the laws of our country. They also work to show how exactly one can liberate a billboard from PR garbage to solid informative data:



Thanks BLF!

The Spies Who Love Us

The fuzzy bear wouldn't lie to you........

Obama Might Not Want To Throw Stones Through His Own Glass House

In politics, everything you say must be assumed that it is recorded and stored for future use. Barack Obama, being a little green, might not have heard about this memo, since it came back to bite him in the ass this week. Back when he was running for Senate he called out Ted Kennedy for not showing some backbone and "getting some spine and standing up to the Republicans." He was talking about prescription drugs and health care for seniors, but political spine can apply to anything. One example would be fighting against retroactive immunity for the telecommunication companies that were willing accomplices for the Bush Administration's prerogative to spy on American citizens.

This is what he said way back when:

"We've got to call up not just Republicans," said the Illinois Democrat, "but we got to call up Ted Kennedy and say, Ted, you're getting a little old now, and you've been a fighter for us before I don't know what's happening now, Ted get some spine and stand up to the Republicans."

The appearance was at an AFL-CIO forum. And Obama was obviously passionate, as many Democrats were, that the then-pending drug bill wasted billions of tax dollars in payoffs to pharmaceutical companies, denied seniors a true choice on prescription drugs, and generally did little in reducing drug costs.

Kennedy, for his part, forged a bipartisan compromise because he believed the legislation would provide millions of seniors with drug benefits for the first time in history.

It should be noted that while on the campaign trail Obama has frequently argued that the Democratic Party should not compromise on its main principles.

I would think holding people accountable for their actions is one of our party's principles. That is especially true when we are trying to uphold the validity of the Constitution and the rule of law. You would think that would be something Barack cares about. So where was he on Monday when push came to shove in the Senate?

Certainly nowhere near the Senate floor, and definitely not next to Chris Dodd and his effort to thwart retroactive immunity....something that Ted Kennedy was shouting out against at the top of his lungs on the same Senate floor.

A Thank You From Chris Dodd

Chris sends a personal thank you out to everyone that cares about holding the tele-communications companies accountable for wiretapping Americans' phone calls:

Ted Kennedy Backs Up Dodd

And he does it in a big way, leading to the small victory we had over retroactive immunity yesterday.

My Hero Of The Day

If only we had enough Senators that were as brave as him to stand up to our pResident:



Update (9:44PM EST): And congrats to him on his victory today. The bill is now tabled, thanks to Dodd's backbone. If only all Democrats could learn from him.

Schumer Bought Mukasey's Bridge, Passes Costs To The Constitution

Mr. "I'll follow the laws you pass" Mukasey is already a busy man in his new job. In just his first week as Attorney General, he is recommending to the President that he veto any legislation that does not let telecom companies off the hook for violating the Constitution. Of course Schumer got confidence to vote Mukasey after he said he'd follow laws regarding waterboarding, even though they were already passed and ignored two years ago. Now how does anyone expect to trust Mukasey regarding any law the Congress might try to enact?

From CNN:

In a letter to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., on the eve of crucial committee votes to update the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), Mukasey was adamant in opposing Leahy's plan for changing the law.

Mukasey and Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell co-signed the letter released Wednesday night by the Justice Department.

"We strongly oppose the proposed substitute amendment. If the substitute is part of a bill that is presented to the president, we and the president's other senior advisers will recommend that he veto the bill," they said.

We know they are against it, they are against accountability, justice and protecting the Constitution. If they served the people, they'd have to get rid of their boss. Knowing George Bush and anyone who has worked for him, how does anyone think that the Administration would follow any law that is to their detriment. You'd have to be pretty naive to buy that...oh wait, maybe Schumer thinks he owns the bridge that leads towards his fancy Park Slope address.

Mark Klein Whistleblows On His Former Telecom Boss

Mark Klein used to work for AT&T. Not only was he employed there, he was tasked with connecting the hardwires from their communication databases to the Bush Administration's program to monitor every single data transfer that occurred between all of their customers. This is an open and shut case, yet the politics of it all hampers justice from being served. Every member of the Judiciary Committee should be watching this before they decide to grant retroactive immunity to any telecommunications giant.

Feinstein The Failure

Dianne Feinstein is set to fail her California constituents and the nation for yet another time. The conservative Democrat recently allowed Mukasey's nomination to go through and his confirmation that took place last night, allowing Bush to get away with torturing people with the waterboarding technique.

Now she wants to give immunity to the giant telecommunications companies that willing engaged in criminal activity with the Bush Administration. The Judiciary Committee has delayed the crucial moment until next week, but her vote is immensely important because of conservative leanings. For now she is siding with the likes of AT&T and Verizon instead of millions of Americans.

From The SF Gate:

The Judiciary Committee is considering immunity for the companies as part of a bill to extend the program past February. Feinstein, in her statement Thursday, said the suits are unfair to the companies, which are "unable to defend themselves in court" because the government has insisted that their activities be kept secret.

Although suits against the companies are "not the right remedy," Feinstein said, the administration should be held accountable through an audit of the surveillance program by the Justice Department's inspector general, as proposed in the Senate legislation.

Cohn disputed Feinstein's assertion that the companies could not defend themselves in the lawsuits. She said federal law allows such defendants to present secret evidence in private to the judge, a practice she said has been carried out for decades without any leaks.

As noted in the article, Feinstein endorsed Senator Rockefeller's statement 'that companies assured by top administration officials that the surveillance program was legal "should not be dragged through the courts for their help with national security." Of course that is complete bullshit and no one should believe Rockefeller, with all the telecom cash that he gets from their lobbyists.

I wonder how much Feinstein gets from them as well?