FISA still lurking
One of the great things about the internet is that it can highlight issues or problems that need attention. One of the bad things is that it causes one to focus too intently on one problem. Remember the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA)? It is still around. It hasn’t been passed only extended.
If you recall Jay Rockefeller was pushing a bill that would give the telecommunication giants a free ride. I have never been clear to Senator Rockefeller’s motives. This move would such a blow to discovery and such a victory for the Bush Administration, why would he do this? No matter the motive, we have a democrat carrying the water for the Republicans.
The FISA bill does expire at the end of this month.
Remember that immunity means no trials. It means no discovery of the process that the administration used to tap our phones. It means that we might never learn the extent of the spying program.
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From WaPo:
The Senate signaled in a key vote yesterday that it supports giving some of the nation’s largest telephone companies immunity from dozens of privacy lawsuits related to a federal domestic eavesdropping program initiated after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
In a lopsided 60 to 36 vote — with 12 Democrats joining Republicans in the majority — the Senate rejected a version of the proposed legislation sponsored by Democrats on the Judiciary Committee. That bill omitted immunity for the telecommunications firms involved in warrantless eavesdropping. (more…)
