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Illinois Senator and presumptive Democratic Presidential nominee Barack Obama is facing new opposition over his recent decision to support Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) legislation, which goes before the Senate today. The surprising source of this new opposition? His own base. Obama had formerly supported amendments to the FISA legislation repealing retroactive immunity for telecommunications companies. It's the new bill's restoration of retroactive immunity that has Obama supporters up in arms. One of the largest groups on Senator Obama's social networking site is dedicated to swaying Obama on today's vote.
According to his official statement upon his recent decision to support the new legislation, Obama claimed, "It restores FISA and existing criminal wiretap statutes as the exclusive means to conduct surveillance - making it clear that the President cannot circumvent the law and disregard the civil liberties of the American people. It also firmly re-establishes basic judicial oversight over all domestic surveillance in the future."
The Senator also recently responded to his borderline-mutinous supporters and stands by his decision that the current legislation is still better than what has been previously offered.
This was not an easy call for me. I know that the FISA bill that passed the House is far from perfect. I wouldn't have drafted the legislation like this, and it does not resolve all of the concerns that we have about President Bush's abuse of executive power...But I also believe that the compromise bill is far better than the Protect America Act that I voted against last year. The exclusivity provision makes it clear to any President or telecommunications company that no law supersedes the authority of the FISA court.
Photo from Barack Obama's Flickr page
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And the hard-core lefties start crying, realizing they have been conned once again, much like the extreme right-wingers have been conned over and over by Bush.
Retroactive immunity is a relatively moderate position, and is probably the best that those in the center and left could ever hope to get from this mess, if one takes into account the mood of the country and how much control the GOP still can exercise over what is debated in Congress and what bills leave Congress. It ain't pretty, but it ain't the worst thing that would happen in regards to FISA and wiretapping, either.
"It restores FISA and existing criminal wiretap statutes as the exclusive means to conduct surveillance ..."
FISA is already the exclusive means to conduct surveillance, so this excuse is BS. Nothing needed to be "restored." Ugh.
The current FISA law *already* allows the government to do warrantless surveillance when necessary! This new bill A) gets rid of many constitutional safeguards that keep the government from abusing their ability to do warrantless surveillance and B) enables the Bush Administration and the cooperating telecoms to avoid ever being prosecuted for breaking law with their indiscriminate spying and surveillance on *Americans* for the last 5 or 6 years. Pantagrapher is right: nothing needs to be restored.
"Retroactive immunity is a relatively moderate position..."
It's disheartening—to say the least—that allowing certain corporations to be retroactively exempt from the rule of law is now a "moderate position."
McCain: "What the heck is going on? Those people in the Center are mine."
Obama: "Heh, heh, heh. First, FISA. That's just the beginning. I'm grabbing your supporters in the middle."
McCain: "Great. No support from the GOP base. Now no support from the middle. Where did all my friends go?"
Pant: It is, indeed. Unfornutately, that is the state of our fucked-up society, as evidenced by the spineless assholes we keep in Congress, both Dems and Republicans all to willing to bend over for Bush.
Don't mistake my observation for personal approval. I just prefer to deal in pragmatic reality, not hopeless idealism.
Ward Up - Funny and true, but didn't McCain begin alienating his centrist supporters as he began slowly and openly embracing the Bush Doctrine?
As one of those Obama supporting,heartbroken lefties you're all so worried about, I have to say this makes me annoyed at Barack for sure.
I understand why he's leaning this way, and can't help but think if he was already President it would not go down like this, but I'm pretty annoyed at all democrats for letting this "compromise" slide.
Yet, somehow, I'm not totally dismayed, heartbroken, apathetic, or now, not voting....
Seems like some of us Obama supporters might actually be thinkers too, not just feelers. Interesting.
Seems like some of us Obama supporters might actually be thinkers too, not just feelers. Interesting.
Agreed with 100%.
It also seems some of you Obama supporters take every criticism surronding this man or his supporters as some attempt at a personal insult. Interesting.
And yet you admit you are annoyed at Obama's recent action, which kind of proves my point. Also interesting.
No see, Matilda, I'm agreeing with you. I don't take this criticism of Obama as a personal insult, I agree. Stupid, dumb move.
I'm taking what you said yesterday as a personal insult ...not this, this is fair game.
Yup, annoyed at Obama's recent action. You bet, I bet I'll be pretty annoyed at other stuff he comes up with (hello separation of church and state!), but I also never expected to agree with everything he does.
I also expect that most of us Obama supporters aren't expecting that either.
Expect. Funny word that.
Matilda, I'm gonna be nice as not to jeapordize my Chicagoist Commentator of the Month of July T shirt soon to be awarded to me. So why don't you please crawl back under the rotting wood back porch of the condemned neighborhood haunted house where you hide in the dark dank dirt and garbage to lure cats, stray dogs, and squirrels to their demise for your life sustaining sustenance!
For the last time! Hard-core lefties didn't vote for O'Bama!
The Goo Goo lake front liberals supported Obama like Margaret and Smuzzy!
Us hard core lefties knew what Obama was from day one. We said it and continue to say it now!
I'm proud to say I voted for Clinton! At least she had a record of doing something progressive in her life time!
Fine, vote for the crazy old man instead.
Hope you enjoy four years of never getting your frisbee off his roof. Also, the coming invasion of Iran.
(And whoever mentions Nader gets a pistol whipping. You do know he's funded by right-wing thinktanks, right?)
Spook: You are a hard-core leftie yet you voted for a centrist Dem who suggested during the primaries that she prefers McCain to a fellow Dem? That is interesting as well, even by your standards.
I know many hard-core lefties who voted for Obama, though I guess you do speak for all hard-core lefties, right, in much the same way that Jesse Jackson speaks for all blacks, right?
Also, do you have the ability to make a point without first trying to confirm that your opponent is a dumb-ass or ... well, what exactly were you trying to call me? Don't worry, I know: You own a superior intellect and have more political and cultural purity than most anyone who posts here, and you are kind to suffer us fools with so much patience and grace. I accept your mastery, though for a master, you sure seem insecure as you must always remind us how superior you are.
matilda,
I would ask you not to spread half truths about me. Especially as Commentator-elect for the most Patriotic Month of the Year, July! So for the record, I did not comment on your intellect. I just mentioned your Komodo dragon, anaconda, viperous, wolverine type chimera genesis that makes you hunger for small rodents, cats,dogs,
pigeons, etc.
And for your information just because some one wears a "Che" T shirt doesn’t make them "left". O'Bama has never done any thing left. In order to be truly left one has to be critical, analytical, against the grain in terms of political thought and courageous in speaking the truth.
He like you is a Centrists win at all cost Liebermancrate.
Now as to my vote, again at least Hillary has done some courageous things in her life. Between the only two candidates on the ballot at the time "some" is better than "nothing"
Oh and Happyfunball who do you think funds O'Bama? Why do you think he opted out of public financing, which he supported at first? Lets see how about the Banking Industry, the Insurance Industry, Com Ed, People's Gas the Credit Card Industry and of course the Daley's.
Heck some Gooo Gooo women actually rang my door bell yesterday collecting money for O'Bama on behalf of the DNC, I came close to pouring water on her.
Of all my favorite fairy tales, none is more heartwarming than the Myth of Liberal Progressive Hillary. Hillary supports the death penalty, and voted for the war in Iraq. Hillary supports a ban on flag burning. Hillary's better half (otherwise known as the only reason she has a political career) made an art form of moving to the center. Still, she did once say she was Rorschach for people, and it now appears people see her as a progressive liberal because that's what they think everyone wants at this point. Still won't work. Hillary will never be president.
scew all yall. I made a promise and I'm not going back! Obama is now the head of the ticket and, and,and I'm gonna support him! I'm gonna belive God Damn it!
Just keep repeating the word change and you will get your obama boner back.
either that or stop reading the paper. Seriously what's the point of being "educated" I'm really poundering this more and more.