source [rquoter] Bush administration pulls back on surveillance agreement WASHINGTON: Senior U.S. administration officials have told the U.S. Congress that they could not promise that the Bush administration would fulfill its January pledge to continue to seek warrants from a secret court for a domestic wiretapping program. Rather, they argued that the president had the constitutional authority to decide for himself whether to conduct surveillance without warrants. As a result of the agreement in January, the administration said that the domestic spying program of the National Security Agency had been brought under the legal structure laid out in the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which required court-approved warrants for the wiretapping of U.S. citizens and others within the United States. But the senior officials, including Michael McConnell, the new director of national intelligence, said Tuesday that they believed the president still had the authority under Article II of the U.S. Constitution to once again order the NSA to conduct surveillance inside the country without warrants. During a hearing of the Senate Intelligence Committee, McConnell was asked by Senator Russ Feingold, a Democrat of Wisconsin, whether he could promise that the administration no longer would sidestep the court when seeking warrants. "Sir, the president's authority under Article II is in the Constitution," McConnell said. "So if the president chose to exercise Article II authority, that would be the president's call." The administration earlier had argued that both the president's inherent executive powers under Article II of the Constitution, as well as the September 2001 congressional authorization to use military force against Al Qaeda, provided him with the power to conduct surveillance without warrants. McConnell said that all domestic electronic surveillance was being conducted with court-approved warrants and that there were no plans "that we are formulating or thinking about currently" to resume it without warrants. The administration seeks new legislation to update the surveillance act to expand government surveillance powers, in part to deal with changes in communications technology since 1978, when the measure was enacted. [/rquoter]
we all saw this coming. this is the reason why ag and company refuse to say that this was out of the president's power. impeach him already.
This has been the most confusing part of the Bush Presidency. He can spy on all the people he wants if he just fills out the paperwork. I know there's a lot of that paperwork to file, but I'd bet that during the post-9/11 patriotism, give Bush anything period, he could have gotten the process streamlined. It bothers me that Clinton had it set up where they could get the warrant after the fact. It really bothers me that Bush refuses to get his warrant after the fact.
It is the after the fact issue that sticks in my craw as well. Even if it was a 1-2 inch sheaf of papers that has to be filled out, if it can be done after the fact, what is the problem?
They don't like paper trails They like to be able to say . . .PROVE IT knowing their is not paper trail IMO this admin has done alot of criminality . . but there will be little to no Proof of it because of things like this. Rocket River "It is not what you know .. . its what you can prove" - Alonzo "Training Day"
Yeah a thread called "Liar in Chief" is really screaming for a composed and intellectual discussion of the issues.
We're on a streak of 4 straight liar Presidents. 27 years with a liar in office. And we wonder why the rest of the world looks down on us.
