Wrong on prediction, right on principle
January 30th, 2008, 7:36 am · Post a Comment · posted by fsherman
Yesterday, I wrote that it appeared Bush would allow the supposedly vital FISA-expansion warrantless eavesdropping bill to expire rather than allow Congress a month to debate it.
Today, I read that the White House and Congress have agreed to a 15-day extension. My bad. And if Bush genuinely believes that these powers are vital to America’s defense (much as I might disagree), then he made the right decision to support an extension.
Me, I think the power to spy on anyone the administration chooses, without warrants is a bad, bad thing. Sure, we’re assured the power will only be used to investigate terrorists—people who blow up school buses, to use Bush’s memorable phrase from a few years back—but the old FISA system worked perfectly well for that (even to the point the government can, if necessary, start spying, then get a retroactive warrant up to three days later, which covers most emergency situations). If anything, the FISA courts were a little more than a rubber stamp for whatever surveillance government wanted to undertake.
That used to be a problem for conservatives, back when they claimed government was our enemy, government power threatened our freedom, government was the problem not the solution. Now we’re being assured that of course Glorious Supreme Leader Bush won’t use this power to spy on political enemies or law-abiding Muslims or left-wing groups, so there’s no need to require warrants or a paper trail: Bush’s judgment of who the bad guys are won’t let us down, we can trust him. To which I respond with two quotes:
“‘Trust me’ government is government that asks that we concentrate our hopes and dreams on one man; that we trust him to do what’s best for us. My view of government places trust not in one person or one party, but in those values that transcend persons and parties. The trust is where it belongs—in the people.”—Ronald Reagan
“We do not provide the government with phone jacks outside our homes for unlimited wiretaps. Why, then, should we grant government the Orwellian capability to listen at will and in real time to our communications across the Web? … The protections of the Fourth Amendment are clear. The right to protection from unlawful searches is an indivisible American value … This is no reason to hand Big Brother the keys to unlock our e-mail diaries, open our ATM records or translate our international communications”—John Ashcroft, on President Clinton’s 1997 Internet surveillance proposals.
(hat tip to blogger Glenn Greenwald for dredging up both quotes).
