Posted on 03/21/2008 10:53:37 AM PDT by K-oneTexas
A Chilling Word of Warning from a U.S. Congressman By Gerald Shaw
FrontPageMagazine.com | Friday, March 21, 2008
Millions of Americans sit comfortably in front of TV screens each day, engrossed in rousing entertainment, sports madness or reality shows -- without the slightest idea they are perilously unprotected from another horrifying terrorist attack.
They can thank the Democratic House of Representatives for failing to pass a sufficient update to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA).
“Every day that goes by is one less day of protection,” said U.S. Representative Tom Feeney (R-FL). “The terrorists know this. They watch TV, too.”
The cause of concern is the refusal among House majority members to include an immunity provision in the extended surveillance act to protect telecommunications companies from prosecution and lawsuits they are threatened with for cooperating with the government.
“They did an extension, but did not include immunity, which is a huge problem for our intelligence,” Feeney explained. “American companies will not be able to cooperate with intelligence authorities unless there is a warrant, which can take weeks and months.
“Corporate executives have an obligation to shareholders not to hold them to possible lawsuits.”
Multi-million-dollar class-action lawsuits have already been filed against telecommunication companies for giving personal information to intelligence agencies without warrants.
“It is pretty apparent the only people that stand to gain from refusing to protect companies are terrorists and trial lawyers,” said Feeney. “I can’t think of any other explanation.”
As FISA began to expire in February, House members decided to delay addressing the issue until the last minute. Then they abruptly took a recess for the President’s Day weekend, leaving America’s intelligence operations in serious trouble. Feeney and other angry House members stated they could have taken up the bipartisan bill that had already been approved by the Senate, which included the immunity provision.
Twenty Democrats joined the Republican minority in approving the Senate bill, showing that some Democrats support full protection under FISA.
On Friday the House met behind closed doors, and finally managed to pass an updated surveillance act, which allows intelligence agencies to intercept communication between terrorists through electronic surveillance.
The only problem is that Democrats refused to include an immunity provision for telecommunications companies, making the bill in many ways useless, but perhaps politically ideal for Democrats. Trial lawyers have been shown to offer a majority of contributions to Democratic office holders.
“The further we get from 9/11, the more politics takes over patriotic judgment I’m afraid,” Feeney said. “If another terrorist attack occurs, much of the blame goes to (House Speaker) Nancy Pelosi and her political allies.”
President Bush has said he will veto the bill if it comes to his desk without the provision that protects cooperation between communications companies and intelligence agencies. Without that cooperation, intelligence will not be able to uncover the kind of the terrorist plans already discovered since 9/11, Feeney said.
There is still a chance of including the provision that ensures national security in the war against terrorists. Senate and House leaders may get together for a conference to reach a compromise. If the immunity is granted, the bill will come back to the House for a vote.
FISA was passed in 1978 in the wake of the Watergate scandal to stop government abuse.
“The result was different agencies couldn’t talk to each other,” Feeney said. The breakdown of the intelligence community was noted in the 9/11 Commission Report. “The CIA knew terrorists were in the U.S., but couldn’t tell the FBI.
“The Republican Congress fixed that after 9/11 temporarily until we would take another look at it. Now the Democrats in the House and Pelosi are killing the extension.”
If this law expires and another soon follows you will get the left-wing media and all the asshats in congress screaming that George W. Bush and Dick Cheney didn’t connect the dots. These idiots in congress want to erase the dots all together.
If we’re attacked again ... I’ll take personal responsibility and hold the socialists responsible.
The democrat party has allied themselves with al Quaeda in the absolute defeat of George Bush at whatever cost I actually saw a liberal poster stating that peace would never come to the world without the diminishing of the U.S. as an economic/military power. What an absolute crock!!!
If the U.S. were to unilaterally withdraw from the world, horible wars would erupt within two years eclipsing anything we have seen in Iraq/Afghanistan.
Good for Feeney! We hear so few conservative voices speaking out that when one does, it sounds like a shout. I like that in a Congressman. Yell, Tom, yell!
Good heavens to Mergatroid, no!! They are after peace, now. Must be more mudslinging politics, which, as everyone knows, is the exclusive domain of the conservatives.
what the hell are we going to eat? No popcorn, i’m guessing doritos are corn based, nachos with cheese have a corn base, the coke is sweetened with corn syrup....we will starveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee, we’re all gonna’ dieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee....
What’s even worse is that 60% of our fruit and vegetables would normally be pollinated by honeybees. With Colony Collapse Disorder killing them all off, we’ll have no apples, citrus, cucumbers, tomatoes, squash or melons, either.
Get used to eating dirt, I guess.
I agree. The Federal Government’s actions in warantless wiretapping and electronic survelliance are so obviously a violation of the 4th amendment that I shouldn’t have to explain why I oppose this.
It is like this: if the government does not have enough evidence to even get a rubber stamp warrant from FISA, then they should not be survelling that person.
A well regulated Militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the People to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed.
but will allow a lot of leeway in "interpreting" a different amendment, under the pretext of "fighting terrorism":
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
I know I'll get flamed for this by the knee-jerk, oh-so-patriotic, anti-terrorists on this, but I think all of the Constitution and Bill of Rights should be very strictly construed.
You want to do something that should require a Warrant, then get one. No shortcuts for the government. The Constitution and Bill of Rights were put in place to restrict government, not the people.
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
--Benjamin Franklin, 1759
"Americans used to roar for Liberty, now they bleat for Security."
--Dr. Norman Vincent Peale
"The two enemies of the people are criminals and government, so let us tie the second down with the chains of the constitution so the second will not become the legalized version of the first."
--Thomas Jefferson
“Get used to eating dirt, I guess.”
we will have to pick the dead bees out of it first
Take a deep breath, settle down.
The food group that is not being impacted by corn consumption, is Chocolate,
I understand that it even has beneficial side effects.
I have heard it is good for the heart, however for some members of society it leads to weight gain.
I am svelte, so I can afford to gain some weight.
Been going on for at least 38 years.
I’m a bit confused by your post. The “fallacy” that President Bush and his policies and practices in security have kept us safe is NOT a fallacy. We have not been hit again, and it’s a matter of cause and effect. The Democrats in Congress, since Madam Pelosi and her “peaceniks” took over there have obviously and steadily moved to make us LESS SAFE. With their latest move, not to renew safety measures and surveillance helps, we are LESS SAFE. Of course, their actions seem aimed at an outcome that will paint President Bush with the broad brush of guilt and blame for EVERYTHING that they’re responsible for
causing with their irresponsibility.
I do expect a large-scale attack, most probably right before the election in an attempt to influence the vote.
They did it in Spain and the U.K. and it worked both times. It may not work like they think here in the U.S. but I don’t know if they are smart enough to realize that.
Then again, it may work just fine here. The American voter is nothing if not fickle. Spun properly by their accomplices in the DNC they can make it look like a total failure of the Bush Administration and sweep HillBama into office.
Sometimes I think there’s nothing left to do but stock up on ammunition.
Exactly. That's why they're working so hard to make it easier for the terrorists. So far the President has managed to protect us and it's driving the Dems nuts.
They would have more success after the elections, if we get a Dem in office. Bush has shown what his response to an attack will be...Dems want to “negotiate” with the terrorists.
Give them a choice: Gitmo or Gladiator.
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