From the Boston Globe - click here to read more...Two senior Democratic House members yesterday demanded that President Bush withdraw his assertion that he can ignore portions of the USA Patriot Act calling on him to provide periodic reports to Congress on how new law-enforcement tactics are being used.
Representatives Jane Harman of California and John Conyers of Michigan -- the ranking Democrats on the Intelligence and Judiciary Committees, respectively -- sent a letter to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales asking that Bush follow the law.
''We ask that the administration immediately rescind this statement and abide by the law," the lawmakers wrote. ''Many members who supported the final law did so based upon the guarantee of additional reporting and oversight. The administration cannot, after the fact, unilaterally repeal provisions of the law implementing such oversight."
2 comments:
"Two senior Democratic House members..." (including my Congressperson, Jane Harman) "...yesterday demanded that President Bush withdraw his assertion that he can ignore portions of the USA Patriot Act calling on him to provide periodic reports to Congress on how new law-enforcement tactics are being used."
These signing statements are nothing new for this president, nor is his stated position that the legislature lacks standing to restrain the administration from unilaterally excercising any power that it considers necessary and can manage to link, in any fashion, to national security.
If Congresswoman Harman doesn’t like it, maybe she shouldn’t have voted for the USA Patriot Act in the first place. This letter she’s sending now is too little, too late.
With Jane’s “yes” vote a few weeks ago, she once again betrayed her progressive Southern California constituency, which (by large margins) opposes the Patriot Act. This pitiful letter cannot possibly compensate for that. But, of course, the whole thing is what we’ve come to expect from the woman who describes herself as “the best Republican in the Democratic Party.”
Thanks again, Jane.
Patrick Meighan
Venice, CA
I've been amazed at the number of Democrats who have been voting like Republicans as well. There's no evidence that I've seen that suggests the Patriot Act has done anything to protect us any better than before and it certainly has worked to restrict our freedoms and privacy.
Joe Lieberman is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Democrats so afraid of this war issue that they've traded in their backbones for strands of spaghetti.
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