"This Is The Capitulation We Have Been Waiting For!"

Or; "A Cave-In You Can Believe In"

Yes, the Junior Senator from Illinois plans on voting for the wretched "bipartisan", "compromise" of a FISA Bill, whenever it hits the Senate next week.

This follows the Stench Hoyer, and table-challenged Nancy Pelosi led Congress's approval of the measure on Friday.

I guess, we'll need historians, some 30-years from now, to come up with the answer and explain why the Democratic-majority House would cave-in to the wants of the worst, and lowest-rated, President in U.S. History.





















Considering they beat back the bill the last time they had it, with the recent Supreme Court decision to restore Habeas Corpus to detainees, and, let's throw in the overwhelming majority of American citizens against Illegal Wiretapping, and Immunity for the crony Telecom companies that conducted it, why on earth did they not stand tall, and emphatically reemphasize the LAME in Lame Duck President?

Aside from the destruction of practical things, like civil liberties, the Constitution, the 4th Amendment, etc, they're handing Stumblin' Bumblin' John McCain a gift, for his trumped up National Security credentials, as well as ammunition to the GOP for the Fall Election.

Couldn't you just hear Obama, at one of the upcoming debates, hammering Stumblin' Bumblin' John McCain, asking him pointedly, yet calmly, why he wants to illegally spy on American citizens, and give the telecom companies that do it a free pass?

Let's face it, SB John would only be able to stutter back some unreality-based, jingoistic, rehashed Commander Guy-speak

This helps the Republican establish the talking point of how "they" are the ones leading the fight on terror. That, it is because of "them" that we are "safe" and, only "they" can keep us safe, and only "they" can fight this war on terror.

Oh, if they blocked or voted down the bill, the Republicans would call them sissies, appeasers, and soft on terror.

Really?

You mean the Swiss-cheese brains of the Democratic Leadership can't figure that out? That they have to sit there, cowering over such school-yard taunting?

Maybe they could remind their counterparts across the aisle, of the tsunami of material that has been released recently, between Scott McClellan's book, the Senate Intelligence Committee's report (and not to mention the classified material they are privileged to see) on how much (if not all) of what the Bush Grindhouse put out there was over-hyped lies.

Remind those across the aisle that the existing FISA law adequately protects us, that it is unnecessary to trample the Constitution and conduct illegal activities to do so.

Yes, this is a change year, a change election, and what the American people are hungering for is representatives that work for the people, that stand up to injustice, that protect our civil liberties and the Constitution.

Hoyer and Pelosi just led the Democrat-controlled Congress in parroting a Dick-Cheney-like "SO!", ignoring the will and wishes of a majority of the country.

While it could play out that Chris Dodd will rally the Senate troops to squash this injustice, or, perhaps Leahy and Feingold.

That would be fine, but the one person, the one Senator, that should be leading the charge, whose voice should be bone-hoarse come Monday, is Barack Obama.

He is now the flag carrier for the Democrats and it is egregious that he is buying into this capitulation.

If Only ... Obama's Frank Capra Moment (That we won't likely see)

Think of the soaring speech he could give, say, from the floor of the Senate, one in which he challenges his colleagues -no, make that shames his colleagues, to stand up for America, to protect our rights, to end the treacherous evil that has suppressed us for the past seven-years, to rise up and reclaim our country, our ideals, our principles.

Christ, the way he can fire it up, even the networks would likely break into the daily soaps to beam this out.

The country comes to a slow stop.

Mass gridlock, as vehicles stop, their occupants leaning over to listen ....

People huddled in front of television store windows ... The Times Square Jumbotron ... Cellphones ... iPods ...Any device that can pick up the speech.

Word reaches the Senate floor that the Senates computer system has crashed, from the millions of emails sent, telling the Senate to follow Obama and kill the bill ...

Fired up, hoarse and haggard, exhausted and in pain, from the injustice that this bill represents, Obama, down to a whisper, extorting his colleagues, perhaps to the point of passing out, ala Jimmy Stewart in 'Mr. Smith Goes To Washington'.

The money shot coming with Stumblin' Bumblin' John McCain, sunken and sullen, embarrassed, places his vote against the measure, unleashing enough of the other rubberstamp Republicans to follow suit and kill this off.

If Obama isn't going to give the speech, and kill the bill, someone needs to ...

"This Is A Very Frightening Bill"

It's likely that a significant portion of the country doesn't have any idea what going on with this FISA Bill, or the implications awaiting upon its' passage.

This is a video of Professor Jonathan Turley, from 'Countdown with Keith Olbermann' Thursday evening, discussing the FISA Bill.

Turley doesn't mince words or sugar-coat anything, and you can sum it up with his "This is a very frightening bill"

From the transcript;

TURLEY: Yes. This is a very frightening bill. What people have to understand is that FISA itself is controversial. This court issued tens of thousands of warrants granted applications for surveillance without turning down any. Only recently did they turn down two.

So, the standard is already so low that they have virtually never refused a request. That standard, however, was too high for the Bush administration.

And, so, people need to be very, very much aware of this bill. What you‘re seeing in this bill is an evisceration of the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution. It is something that allows the president and the government to go in to law-abiding homes on their word alone, their suspicion alone, and to engage in warrantless surveillance. That‘s what the framers that drafted the Fourth Amendment wanted to prevent.

Congress Prepares to GUT the Fourth Amendment!




Read the full transcript Here

You are now warned and armed ...

Do let happen to you, what happened to Dr. Miles Bennell, in 'The Invasion of the Body Snatchers';

"Listen to me! Please listen! If you don't, if you won't, if you fail to understand, then the same incredible terror that's menacing me WILL STRIKE AT YOU!"


Bonus Bend Over Riffs

Christy Hardin Smith: A Necessary Word Of Thanks…

Glenn Greenwald: Time Magazine uncritically prints Nancy Pelosi's "justification" for the FISA "compromise"

Cernig: Obama Backs FISA Cave

digby: Sistah Soljah'd ?

Glenn Greenwald: Obama's support for the FISA "compromise"

emptywheel: A Letter to the Next President of the United States

Greg Sargent: Why Obama's Support For FISA Cave-In Is Such A Downer

Jack Balkin: Why Obama Kinda Likes the FISA Bill (But He Won't Come Out and Say It)