Stampeding Congress, Again

New York Times | Aug. 3, 2007 (Editorial)

Mr. Bush decided after 9/11 that he was no longer going to obey that law. He authorized the National Security Agency to intercept international telephone calls and e-mail messages of Americans and other residents of this country without a court order. He told the public nothing and Congress next to nothing about what he was doing, until The Times disclosed the spying in December 2005.

Ever since, the White House has tried to pressure Congress into ... Full Story »

Posted by Dale Penn

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by Susan Acito - Oct. 1, 2008

Yes, the only thing I see that the article didn't mention is that the illegal spying on Americans started before 9/11. It's important that a court review the wiretapping, because there is too much temptation for the program to be used for purposes such as spying on political rivals, or even used for blackmail purposes to pressure opponents. The court has found the program as Bush has been using it to be unconstitutional, so the main reason he's pushing so hard is to cover his own law-breaking.