That’s really the gist of the show down in the Senate today about making permanent the FISA statute that allows national security spooks to listen in to phone conversations of suspected terrorists. (WaPo story here) The Bush Administration wants to exempt telephone companies from lawsuit liability for helping the government to listen in to the phone conversations. Democrats, who answer to the tort bar, want to leave phone companies open to jack pot justice for helping the federal government for any reason.
It is not unreasonable to allow the phone companies exemptions for helping the United States’ national security needs. We definitely need to keep watch on this practice; that’s only reasonable; but the Democrats’ continuing blockade of this legislation makes them look weak (again) on national security and makes them look like they’re once again willing to denigrate national security to score political points with the moveon.commie crowd.
Before you get scrappy about warrantless wiretaps, let me just tell you that they do–eventually–get warrants AND there are many other searches that can take place without warrants. Former terrorist prosecutor Andy McCarthy gives you the deets here.