Please stop making Feingold look honest
By Bob Pence Posted in User Blogs — Comments (9) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
Unfortunately, with what we've been told so far, Feingold has a point.Normally the VP is plain-spoken, but even he is repeating the useless suggestion that Feingold wants us not to be able to listen to al Qaeda. Unfortunately, Feingold has been using the very effective suggestion that everything done could have and should have been done with the FISA court. And unfortunately, I have yet to hear a good response to this.
So, please, a simple question: What was different about the calls monitored without FISA court involvement?
My theory has been that these are numbers stored on terrorists' cell phones, and that they would not pass muster for a warrant. That's okay with me, I don't think terrorists are making a lot of calls to MovieFone, and this is war rather than law enforcement. But what bugs me is that I haven't heard through official channels this or anything else that definitively overcomes the "Bush could have used the FISA court" argument.
The problem is that so does Feingold. His edge is that we don't have a response to his contention that it could be done within the FISA process. I want a better response to that. Just saying "we need the intelligence" is intellectually dishonest, or seems so in light of his contention.
So, given that Feingold et al suggest that the same intelligence could be gathered by the same people at the same time, but with a FISA warrant, how do we respond?
Could it be that because of the way the program is defined (admittedly as I understand it) it does not target US citizens or legal residents? It is targetted at calls to/from number identified from other sources as associated in some way with the terrorists. FISA does not apply, and there is the matter of the president's Article II powers.
Feingold does not understand this because it serves him not to understand it. You cannot grandstand this issue based on the facts.
But frankly this whole NSA business is getting tiresome. It has been beat within an inch of its life here on Redstate for weeks now so I doubt I'll have anything more to say on the matter --- which may not be a bad thing :-) In addition, a clear majority of Americans support it; non-issue.
not even the Democratic Leadership in Congress will support Feingold OR say the program should be shut down, hasn't gotten thru to you yet.
Even Diane Feinstein said she was impressed with the way the program was being run. Today, she said that.
The overwhelming legal opinion is that the program is legal as is. In other words the President has the authority to order the intercepts.
Do us all a favor and go shopping for a new tinfoil hat.
We want Feingold to look honest. If the libs think he's only posturing, they won't vote for him!
poll numbers
So, given that Feingold et al suggest that the same intelligence could be gathered by the same people at the same time, but with a FISA warrant, how do we respond?
My response is 'Why get a warrant when you don't have to?'
Carter's executive order.
1-101. Pursuant to Section 102(a)(1) of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C. 1802(a)), the Attorney General is authorized to approve electronic surveillance to acquire foreign intelligence information without a court order, but only if the Attorney General makes the certifications required by that Section.
My emphasis.
Clinton's executive order.
Section 1. Pursuant to section 302(a)(1) of the Act, the Attorney General is authorized to approve physical searches, without a court order, to acquire foreign intelligence information for periods of up to one year, if the Attorney General makes the certifications required by that section.
My emphasis.
Now I am no lawyer, but that from what I have read, no warrant is needed. I also understand that Bill Clinton used the same authority to get Aldridge Ames. So what's the problem?
By the way, Feingold is a scumbag. Why would anyone want to censure a US President, during a war, for doing whatever he has to to protect this country? President Bush didn't authorize the NSA program for political or personal gain.
Wartime Intelligence