! Federalist Society Bigwig: "Bush ... Clear and Present Danger"

Remember Bruce Fein from the Clinton impeachment? He's a scrawny founder of the Federalist Society, often brought on as a constitutional law analyst by the networks.

Check out this snip of his commentary from the Washington Times:


President Bush presents a clear and present danger to the rule of law. He cannot be trusted to conduct the war against global terrorism with a decent respect for civil liberties and checks against executive abuses. Congress should swiftly enact a code that would require Mr. Bush to obtain legislative consent for every counterterrorism measure that would materially impair individual freedoms.

snip.......

The NSA eavesdropping is further troublesome because it easily evades judicial review. Targeted citizens are never informed their international communications have been intercepted. Unless a criminal prosecution is forthcoming (which seems unlikely), the citizen has no forum to test the government's claim the interceptions were triggered by known links to a terrorist organization.
Mr. Bush acclaimed the secret surveillance as "crucial to our national security. Its purpose is to detect and prevent terrorist attacks against the United States, our friends and allies." But if that were justified, why was Congress not asked for legislative authorization in light of the legal cloud created by FISA and the legislative branch's sympathies shown in the Patriot Act and joint resolution for war? FISA requires court approval for national security wiretaps, and makes it a crime for a person to intentionally engage "in electronic surveillance under color of law, except as authorized by statute."
Mr. Bush cited the disruptions of "terrorist" cells in New York, Oregon, Virginia, California, Texas and Ohio as evidence of a pronounced domestic threat that compelled unilateral and secret action. But he failed to demonstrate those cells could not have been equally penetrated with customary legislative and judicial checks on executive overreaching.
The president maintained that, "As a result , our enemies have learned information they should not have, and the unauthorized disclosure of this effort damages our national security and puts our citizens at risk." But if secrecy were pivotal to the NSA's surveillance, why is the president continuing the eavesdropping? And why is he so carefree about risking the liberties of both the living and those yet to be born by flouting the Constitution's separation of powers and conflating constructive criticism with treason?


http://washingtontimes.com/commentary/bfein.htm

I hope the rest of the Federalists agree with him.

...we need more on the right to speak out.

The incosistencies in Bush's "story" are glaring. Bush could have immediately wiretapped anyone he wanted under FISA, as long as he presented the case to the FISA court within 72 hours. They have denied only 4 requests since the law was established.

The "protecting Americans" argument is an emotional device used to fog the public perception. The Bushie's clearly broke the law, for no clear reason.

Heaven knows what other things he's doing that we don't even know about.

We have to 25th Amendment this insane clown while we still have a Constitution.

I wondered what happened to him since Clinton left office.

I always thought he looked like a cross between Stephen J. Hawking and Barney Fife.

:kick:

His base is begining to understand just how corrupt and un-American he is.

:kick: