Fisa

Senate Passes FISA Bill, Gives Telecoms Immunity

Posted by Jeff from Huffington Post

Bowing to President Bush's demands, the Senate sent the White House a bill Wednesday overhauling bitterly disputed rules on secret government eavesdropping and shielding telecommunications companies from lawsuits complaining they helped the U.S. spy on Americans.

. Clinton voted against the compromise, while Obama voted for it.

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Chris Dodd's speech and a glimmer of hope for stopping the FISA bill - Glenn Greenwald - Salon.com

Posted by Damianmann from Salon

The more a bill like this is pushed off into the future, especially in an election year consumed with other matters, the greater the likelihood that, through inertia alone, enough delay can prevent enactment this year.

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Obama Backing FISA

Posted by Damianmann from Tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo

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.

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Feingold, Dodd planning filibuster of wiretap bill, prospects dim

Posted by Jeff from Rawstory

A Dodd-led filibuster in February attracted just 29 supporters, short of the 41 necessary to keep a bill from coming to a vote. Speaking in Washington Monday, Feingold was pessimistic about their chances this time around.

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MoveOn to Obama: Keep Your Word, Filibuster Telecom Immunity

Posted by Damianmann from Crooks and Liars

I know many readers were upset with Obama's response to the newly passed Hoyer/FISA bill that granted the Telecoms retroactive immunity. If he brings up an amendment to strip the immunity provision in the Senate next week and it fails-then-what's the point, right? Greg Sargent said "Why Obama's Support For FISA...

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Mr. Bush v. the Bill of Rights - Editorial - NYTimes.com

Posted by okami from New York Times

In the waning months of his tenure, President Bush and his allies are once again trying to scare Congress into expanding the president's powers to spy on Americans without a court order.

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FISA failure demonstrates why we need real progressives in Congress

Posted by VincebusEruptum from Scholarsandrogues.wordpress

I'm still mulling over the massive Democratic capitulation that enabled Bush to pass into law the most sweeping violation of Americans' privacy yet. Why did Democrats in both chambers of Congress roll over and give Mr. 28% carte blanche to spy on Americans without any recourse? Why throw away all the political capital that could have been gained from opposing him? It wasn't just Democrats who helped push this ugly bill into law--many of the supporters were newly-elected netroots Democrats...

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