Bush has claimed that he had power, as commander-in-chief and under the authorizing language for launching a war against Afghanistan, to circumvent the constitutional protections against warrantless searches of American citizens because he deemed it necessary. Cheney claims that he has supported actions from the beginning with the intent of building a stronger executive weakened by Vietnam and Watergate revelations of presidential excesses, such as Nixon's enemies list. See this story in the Washington Post.
After learning about torture memos, extraordinary renderings, black site prisons, and illegal government propaganda at home and abroad, last week Americans were informed of one more power grab by the current occupant of the White House. We learned that Bush has authorized domestic spying since 2001 that circumvents the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act procedures.
The White House claims that it made the program known to sufficient Congressional and judicial personnel to provide any needed oversight. Several of those in Congress that were informed have voiced their doubts about the legality of the program and noted that the way they were informed prevented them from performing any kind of oversight function, because they were prohibited from sharing any information with others or seeking advice of legal counsel.
The White House apparently informed only the head of the FISA court. Other judges learned about the activities only when the Washington Post broke the story. One FISA judge has already resigned, apparently because of his view that the program may be illegal. According to the Washington Post, here, because of the many concerns expressed by most of the other FISA judges, the chief FISA judge has now arranged for the Justice Department and National Security Agency to explain to the court how the program has worked, why the FISA court was bypassed, and what the claimed legal basis for the program is.
Congress should also pursue an investigation into these matters, including not only this surveillance but also the Pentagon's database on American citizens and the FBI's incident files on anti-war, environmental, and other organizations. This should be a part of Congress's in-depth review of the various excessive provisions in the so-called "Patriot Act" during the six-month extension agreed upon today. A government's decision to spy on its own citizens is a stark signal of repression that has no merit in a true democracy. And no matter what the security threat, a presidential claim to unrestrained power is unacceptable.
Comments