Finally! Steny Hoyer is being called on his betrayal of our liberties! Glenn Greenwald wrote a powerhouse of an article and call to action over at Salon. As a result, he raised over $20,000 in the first hour for a campaign targeting Hoyer and other Key Democratic members of Congress (leadership, mostly...the traitors). From Glenn:
It is now definitively clear that House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer is the driving force behind a bill -- written by GOP Sen. Kit Bond -- to vest the President with vast new warrantless eavesdropping powers and to vest lawbreaking telecoms with amnesty. Even as his office dishonestly denies that he is doing so, still more reports yesterday -- this one from the NYT and this one from Roll Call (sub req'd) -- confirm that a so-called "compromise" is being spearheaded by Hoyer and the House Democratic leadership. The ACLU and EFF are holding a joint call tomorrow to denounce Hoyer's "compromise" as nothing more than disguised guaranteed immunity for telecoms and, further, because "the proposed deal could be used to authorize dragnet surveillance of Americans' communications in violation of the Fourth Amendment."
As a result, there is a major new campaign beginning today aimed at Hoyer and a handful of other key members of Congress who enable telecom immunity and warrantless eavesdropping. In order to raise as much money as possible for this campaign -- far more than the $85,000 raised (and still being spent) in Chris Carney's district as a result of his support for warrantless eavesdropping and telecom amnesty -- we are working to create an alliance with numerous organizations and factions across the ideological spectrum (my bold) which oppose civil liberties erosions, as well as with as many blogs as possible (modeled vaguely after the ideologically diverse alliance that has arisen in Britain in opposition to the sprawling and lawless surveillance state there).
In his updates, Glenn announces that a broad alliance is forming as you read, which includes (so far) the ACLU, leading leftist bloggers, "as well as the faction that masterminded the online money bombs for the Ron Paul presidential campaign, represented by Break the Matrix, Rick Williams and Trevor Lymon."
Trevor Lyman and I are pleased to advise that BreakTheMatrix is taking up this issue of warrantless wiretapping and the surveillance state in conjunction with our friends and colleagues from the left. Announcing: "Strangebedfellows"-- a strategic alliance of BreakTheMatrix, the ACLU, and the leading online leftist bloggers coming together for the purpose of standing for constitutional rights and freedom online. We oppose this runaway surveillance state that George Bush and the establishment Democrats are trying to enhance (yet again) in the form of a bipartisan "compromise" on warrantless eavesdropping and telecom immunity measures contained in a pending overhaul of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).
This is good news! We may not be able to stop these yahoos, but if our elected officials won't honor their sworn oaths to protect and defend the Constitution, it falls to WE THE PEOPLE to do so.
The Bush Administration, with the aid and comfort of our turncoat leadership, have created divisions in America where they didn't exist. "Divide and conquer" is not just an old saying. It is a strategy. There are multitudes on the Right who share the same attitudes towards our civil liberties as we on the left do. We can work together on the things we agree on and save our differences of opinion for other times and places. The stakes are the highest...our civil liberties, our constitution, our identity as Americans and what we know we stand for.
Russ Feingold and Chris Dodd have issued a joint statement vehemently condemning this "compromise."
I spent five hours last night glued to my television set. This was highly unusual for me since I rarely watch, preferring to get my news and entertainment on the internet.
What was so riveting? Dennis Kucinich was standing on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives in his best suit and tie, with his most solemn face on, and with a stack of paper from which he was reading 35 articles of impeachment of George W. Bush. I couldn't stop watching and listening as the charges went on and on.
Right in the middle of the reading, I picked up my phone and called Representative Kucinich's Washington office. An aide answered the phone of course, and when I told him I was calling from Alabama the poor fellow sounded as though he was preparing to take a beating. I asked him to convey a message to the Congressman for me and he agreed to do that. "Tell him THANK YOU! It's way past time someone did this!" His voice lightened right up after that, and he took my name and location, and said he would be happy to convey the message for me, and I went back to listening.
Representative Kucinich covered everything I could think of and then some. Listening to him put me in mind of Hugh's List of Bush Scandals, only with more documentation and with testimony records. He even covered Katrina (yes!). I was determined to get a copy of these articles, and was trying to find them this morning (kucinich.us was down) when, lo and behold...
This was in my email, and it seems like a good way to provide some back support for Congress. When I call, I'm mentioning "Bush" and "snake oil" in the same sentence.
September 6th is National Call-In Day
Capitol Hill Switchboard: 202-224-3121
Join the PDA Fall Peace Offensive, to flood the offices of our members of Congress with calls demanding an end to the U.S. occupation of Iraq. Make it clear: there cannot be "business as usual" in Washington until effective action is taken to bring all the troops home!
Call your Representative and both Senators (Richard Shelby and Jeff Sessions in Alabama) on Thursday, September 6th Capitol Hill Switchboard: 202-224-3121.
Seventy members of Congress have already signed an open letter to President Bush stating they "will only support appropriating additional funds for U.S. military operations in Iraq during Fiscal Year 2008 and beyond for the protection and safe redeployment of all our troops out of Iraq."
The popularity of Congress is dwindling as they allow the Iraq occupation to continue.
Let's rally around those Congress members who are standing firm in using their power of the purse to carry out the voters will of disengagement from Iraq, and let's put pressure on the others to join them.
Call your member of Congress and Senators Shelby and Sessions today and let them know how you feel. 202-224-3121
T.H.E. Social Work Agency Adoption home studies & care management services in the North Alabama area.
Licensed, certified, caring social workers. blog advertising is good for you
