Fuck FISA

I was on the road for eight hours today, a drive to The Cities & back. I missed the FISA debacle of a debate. Our elected offficials in the world's most deliberative body sold out the ideals & values of America today. It is truly a sad & tragic day in America. I'm stealing, from First Draft the following from the "debate". First, my senator, Russ Feingold.

Mr. President, I sit on the Intelligence and Judiciary Committees, and I am one of the few members of this body who has been fully briefed on the warrantless wiretapping program. And, based on what I know, I can promise that if more information is declassified about the program in the future, as is likely to happen either due to the Inspector General report, the election of a new President, or simply the passage of time, members of this body will regret that we passed this legislation. I am also familiar with the collection activities that have been conducted under the Protect America Act and will continue under this bill. I invite any of my colleagues who wish to know more about those activities to come speak to me in a classified setting. Publicly, all I can say is that I have serious concerns about how those activities may have impacted the civil liberties of Americans. If we grant these new powers to the government and the effects become known to the American people, we will realize what a mistake it was, of that I am sure.

Now, as it has been called, a eulogy for America from Sen. Chris Dodd.

I want to thank the thousands who joined with us in this fight around the country – those who took to the blogs, gathered signatures for online petitions and created a movement behind this issue. Men and women, young and old, who stood up, spoke out and gave us the strength to carry on this fight. Not one of them had to be involved, but each choose to become involved for one reason and one reason alone:

Because they love their country.

They remind us that the “silent encroachments of those in power” Madison spoke of can, in fact, be heard, if only we listen.

All of us—my colleagues and citizens around the country—share a fundamental belief about in our Constitution, Mr. President. We believe our Constitution isn’t incidental to our security – but rather its very foundation.

This notion—that it is the rule of law that keeps us safe—should not be controversial, Mr. President.

I take a backseat to no one when it comes to protecting Americans and Americans’ safety. But if history has taught us anything, it simply isn’t necessary to sacrifice our freedoms to do that.

I do not believe history will judge this President kindly for his contempt for the rule of law. But will history will be any kinder to those of us who have served as these transgressions occurred on our watch?

I have two daughters – Grace and Christina, who are six and three. Their generation will ask someday:

Where were you when the President asked you to repudiate the Geneva Conventions and strip away the right of habeas corpus?

Where were you when stories of secret prisons and outsourced torture first began to surface and then became impossible to deny?

And of today they will ask, where were you when Congress was persuaded to shield wealthy corporations that may well have knowingly acted outside of the law to spy on Americans?

Where were we?

Right here, Mr. President – in this chamber, at this moment.

History will not forget.

It will not forget our role in any of this.

This is bad, people, real bad. I bolded it all, just so my loyal four readers will find it easier to read, although, to mix metaphors, harder to swallow. I suppose we must plan, as A. says, plan to get rid of the worthless Democrats who voted for this fascistic bill, plan for forcing Obama to do the right thing, plan on where we will be moving, plan on explaining this to our grandchildren. It is a bad day in Nowheresville, Wisco.