There is no other way to look at this move. They said they wouldn't give the President such wiretapping authority, claiming it was an unconstitutional move towards a police state, but now they stand poised to do so. Either they are admitting that they were wrong and George W. Bush was correct about the national security needs of this country and the extent of government power during wartime, OR they lack the integrity to stand up for principle -- or both.

Two months after vowing to roll back broad new wiretapping powers won by the Bush administration, Congressional Democrats appear ready to make concessions that could extend some of the key powers granted to the National Security Agency.

Bush administration officials say they are confident they will win approval of the broadened wiretapping authority that they secured temporarily in August as Congress rushed toward recess, and some Democratic officials admit that they may not come up with the votes to rein in the administration.

As the debate over the N.S.A.Â’s wiretapping powers begins anew this week, the emerging legislation reflects the political reality confronting the Democrats. While they are willing to oppose the White House on the conduct of the war in Iraq, they remain nervous that they will be labeled as soft on terrorism if they insist on strict curbs on intelligence gathering.

A Democratic bill to be proposed Tuesday in the House would maintain for several years the type of broad, blanket authority for N.S.A. wiretapping that the administration secured in August for just six months. But in an acknowledgment of civil liberties concerns, the measure would also require a more active role by the special foreign intelligence court that oversees the N.S.A.Â’s interception of foreign-based communications.

A competing proposal in the Senate, still being drafted, may be even closer in line with the administrationÂ’s demands, with the possibility of including retroactive immunity for telecommunications companies that took part in the N.S.A.Â’s once-secret program to wiretap without court warrants.

Now watching the justification the Dems give for whatever bill comes out of the legislative Branch should be amusing. As one on the Right who believed that such powers were appropriate and historically precedented, I applaud the move -- but am sorry to see that the move may not be based upon a desire to make our country safe and strong, but rather to bolster Democrat national security credentials. Which would mean, of course, that they are willing to play politics with our national security and our Constitution, principle be damned.

Posted by: Greg at 10:38 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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