Whitehouse Takes On Mukasey
Administration officials and Republican leaders still claim that following U.S. laws is too inconvenient, and that due process regulations under the FISA laws prevent the government from doing its job effectively. In a letter to Mukasey, Senators Whitehouse and Casey call upon Mukasey to correct his misleading statements.
“I was disappointed to hear our Attorney General convey the erroneous and grossly misleading impression that FISA due process safeguards prevented the U.S. government from intercepting Al Qaeda communications that may have stopped the horrific 9/11 attacks. Not only did the Attorney General not get his facts straight, he was only the latest Administration official to inappropriately use the tragic events of September 11th to advocate for a policy change. It is time for senior Administration officials to stop blaming legal safeguards which only serve to protect the rights of American citizens.”
Most curiously though, and a point which never receives sufficient examination, if the FISA legislation is seen by Republicans to be so crucial in protecting the lives of Americans, then why does Bush keep threatening a veto if it doesn’t included telecom immunity provisions? Could it be that Republicans are using scare tactic yet again to try and push through horrible policies? Yup!