The Democrats Betray American Civil Liberties, Again

After the 2006 Congressional election, I rhetorically asked, “Will the Democrats Save Our Civil Liberties?” Now we have the clear answer with the top Democrats totally caving in to Bush’s requests for unchecked, unilateral warrantless domestic spying powers. Along with almost half the House Democrats, Senator and presidential candidate Barack Obama has just now expressed his support for the “compromise” that gives the administration even more than it expected.

This further bolsters my argument that gridlock, especially in the modern permanent war era, is an illusion at best. As Glenn Greenwald puts it, “in 2006, when the Congress was controlled by Bill Frist and Denny Hastert, the administration tried to get a bill passed legalizing warrantless eavesdropping and telecom amnesty, but was unable. They had to wait until the Congress was controlled by Steny Hoyer, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid to accomplish that.” Also see Greenwald’s latest post on the sell-out.