Patriot Act Stalled: Republican Insurrection Continues
Eli already Slogged about the latest Bush breech: today’s front-page news that Bush authorized domestic spying without court-approval. It’s another scandal that threatens to unravel the Bush administration.
I’d like to point out two related stories in today’s papers that highlight an unnerving theme for this administration. And I think it’s a theme that’s moving toward a crescendo or reckoning for the Republican Party.
Story 1: Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel led the successful charge to block renewal of the USA Patriot Act today (can you say spying without court approval?), by threatening a filibuster. (I thought Republicans were against filibusters.)
Story 2 (Also a front-pager): Bush was forced to reverse course and support Republican Sen. John McCain’s call for a law banning torture of prisoners in U.S. custody.
Meanwhile, as to the revelations about unauthorized domestic spying: It’s a Republican, Sen. Arlen Specter, that’s calling for hearings.
The theme: The Republicans are fed up with Bush, and they are leading the insurrection. I know people are sick of Vietnam analogies to today’s Iraq era, but this is precisely what happened to the Democrats during the Vietnam era. And the Democrats are still reeling from it.
Not to mention Larry Craig, (R-ID) who came out against extension of the Patriot Act. Craig is a board member of the NRA, an organization which is very concerned with privacy. If you have hundreds of various firearms, you don't want the government spying on you any more than if you are a granola liberal peace activist protesting the Iraq War.