strib: Al Gore talks turkey, gets a gobble in reply

[question everything]

StarTribune.com MINNEAPOLIS - ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA

Last update: January 21, 2006 – 6:38 PM
Al Gore talks turkey, gets a gobble in reply

On wiretapping, "they did it too" won't cut it.

Former Vice President Al Gore gave a rip-roaring speech last week attacking the Bush administration for "repeatedly and insistently" breaking federal law and "disrespecting" the U.S. Constitution. One of his major examples was the Bush administration's massive, warrantless wiretapping of American citizens that has recently come to light. One may agree with his analysis or not, but Gore did not deserve the trashing he got from the White House, which spun a fluffy cloud of half-truths.

In televised remarks, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said that "during the Clinton administration there was activity regarding the physical searches without warrants" and that Clinton's "deputy attorney general testified before Congress that the president does have the inherent authority under the Constitution to engage in physical searches without a warrant." These, Gonzales said, were "inconsistent with what the former vice president was saying today." Presidential spokesman Scott McClellan, speaking to reporters, made the same two points and concluded that Gore's "hypocrisy knows no bounds."

(snip)

So what you have is a legal, warrantless search of a single identified individual (Ames) who posed a serious threat to the nation, versus illegal, warrantless wiretaps on thousands of Americans who posed no threat whatsoever. The New York Times reported last week that in this illegal program, the National Security Agency sent the FBI a "flood" of telephone numbers, e-mail addresses and names that "required hundreds of agents to check out thousands of tips a month." Of those, "virtually all led to dead ends or innocent Americans," officials told the Times. This entire operation resulted in hundreds of agents being pulled away from more promising investigations into terrorism.

Gore can't neutralize the untruths spoken by Gonzales and McClellan. But perhaps the American Civil Liberties Union can. Along with another group and several individuals, the ACLU has brought suit against the government challenging the legality of the warrantless wiretapping. They have a strong case.

(snip)

http://www.startribune.com/561/story/196015.html

[democrat_patriot]

1. Gee, I wonder how Alito will rule when the ACLU suit

hits the SCOTUS.

[Hestia]

2. Exactly!

"So what you have is a legal, warrantless search of a single identified individual (Ames) who posed a serious threat to the nation, versus illegal, warrantless wiretaps on thousands of Americans who posed no threat whatsoever."

This is what I told my DH yesterday - at least Clinton caught SOMEBODY in the one case, what has Bush done?