Go with your heart and do the right thing

(image found here: Sat. Evening Post article)

Look, I don't want anyone to think that I've gone all-Dodd, all-the-time. It's just that yesterday's actions by Dodd are what we want: action that supports the Constitution and doesn't piss away rights in an effort to appease the Right or the Village elders.

And by we, I mean political activists & bloggers on the left who think correctly, just like me.

Chris stood up and did it, and for that he should be applauded.

And rewarded.

and we'll keep on fighting to the end

Chris Dodd this evening after the FISA bill is pulled:



Here's the thing, candidates. This is what we want. All the glowing, lofty rhetoric is nice, except that it's meaningless unless you do something to bring it to fruition:

• Out of Iraq doesn't mean 5-10 years.

• No telecom amnesty doesn't mean retroactive immunity.

• Bi-partisan doesn't mean Republicans rule.

• National health care doesn't mean insurance companies dictate rules.

• Less oil dependence doesn't mean record profits/tax breaks for Exxon.

So far, Dodd, despite low poll numbers, is the only candidate who has indicated he's willing to stand up to the Bushies, as well as the defeatist wing of the Democratic Party.

Other candidates would do well to watch, and learn.

Well all right let people know

Chris Dodd made it happen today:

A Reid aide tells Greg Sargent that “Reid refused to jam this bill through the Senate because he believes it’s an important bill that deserves to be debated thoroughly.” FireDogLake writes, “Well played, Senator Dodd.”

Here's Dodd earlier today, very fired up:



Matt Browner-Hamlin at the Dodd campaign says:

Senator Dodd issued the following statement in response to Senator Reid pulling the Intel Committee bill from consideration until the new year:

"Today we have scored a victory for American civil liberties and sent a message to President Bush that we will not tolerate his abuse of power and veil of secrecy. The President should not be above the rule of law, nor should the telecom companies who supported his quest to spy on American citizens. I want to thank the thousands of Americans throughout the country that stood with me to get this done for our country."

The progressive blogs, who played a huge role in lobbying the Senate to support Dodd's leadership against retroactive immunity, are joining in the celebration now that the FISA bill has been pulled until next year.

Sam Stein at HuffPost adds:

Senator Chris Dodd won a temporary victory today after his threats of a filibuster forced Democratic leadership to push back consideration of a measure that would grant immunity to telecom companies that were complicit in warrantless surveillance.

The measure was part of a greater bill to reorganize the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Earlier on Monday, the Senate, agreed to address a bill that would have overhauled FISA, authorized the monitoring of people outside the United States, given secret courts the power to approve aspects of surveillance, and granted telecom companies retroactive immunity for past cooperation.

But the threat of Dodd's filibuster, aimed primarily at the latter measure, persuaded Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-NV, to table the act until January. A compromise on the immunity will ostensibly be worked out in the interim period.

Don't look around, no, keep on going

Update, from the Dodd campaign:

Wanted to pass along an update regarding Sen. Dodd's efforts to block the FISA bill on the Senate floor today...

Sen. Dodd has continued to apply pressure to Senate Leadership, staying on the floor to speak when yielded time for approximately seven hours, while leaders stayed behind closed doors to negotiate what they should do next.

Sen. Dodd is still prepared to offer his amendment and mount a filibuster if debate on this bill is moved forward.

Thanks, Sen. Dodd.

Sing a song, it'll make your day

FireDogLake has a petition to Harry Reid:

Tell Harry Reid To Support Chris Dodd's Filibuster!

Dear Senator Reid: I am outraged by your efforts to enable the Bush administration and telecoms to escape all accountability for their illegal spying on American citizens. I am appalled by your refusal to recognize the "hold" placed by Sen. Chris Dodd on the Cheney/Rockefeller bill to expand warrantless eavesdropping and provide telecoms immunity, especially given the reverence with which you treat "holds" asserted by GOP Senators. And I am truly disappointed that you have treated in such a cavalier manner revelations that the Bush administration has simply broken the law in how it has spied on Americans. Sadly, your legacy as Senate Majority Leader thus far is one of extreme weakness and failure. It is astonishing to watch one capitulation after the next to a President who is widely discredited and historically unpopular and whose administration is patently corrupt. Your constituents did not send you to Washington to enable the Bush administration's behavior, but rather to act as an important check on that behavior. Your role as Senate Majority Leader is to impose limits on the President's misconduct, not to enable and endorse it. You are profoundly failing in all of your core duties. More than ever, America needs principled and courageous leadership, and you are uniquely situated to provide it. Please start doing so. You can begin by joining in Chris Dodd's filibuster of the horrific Senate Intelligence Committee bill and by urging your caucus members to do the same. Fill out the form below to make your voice heard:

First Name: * Last Name: *

Email Address: *

Zip / Postal Code *

Your Comments:

* denotes required field

Go tell it on the mountain

Update: Senate is live on CSPAN-2 (Ch. 37, on Time-Warner cable in L.A. area)



Jane at Firedoglake has a message from the Obama campaign supporting Dodd's pledge to filibuster the FISA law that would give retro-active immunity to the bastard telecom companies for illegally spying on Americans:

"Senator Obama unequivocally opposes giving retroactive immunity to telecommunications companies and has cosponsored Senator Dodd's efforts to remove that provision from the FISA bill. Granting such immunity undermines the constitutional protections Americans trust the Congress to protect. Senator Obama supports a filibuster of this bill, and strongly urges others to do the same. It's not clear whether he can return for the vote, but under the Senate rules, the side trying to end a filibuster must produce 60 votes to cut off debate. Whether he is present for the vote for not, Senator Obama will not be among those voting to end the filibuster."

Leave comments for Dodd here.

Call Senators using the table below:

Individual Senator Rundown:

Name	Party	State	Position	Take Action
Murkowski, Lisa	R	AK	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Stevens, Ted	R	AK	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Sessions, Jeff	R	AL	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Shelby, Richard C.	R	AL	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Lincoln, Blanche L.	D	AR	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Pryor, Mark L.	D	AR	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Kyl, Jon	R	AZ	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
McCain, John	R	AZ	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Boxer, Barbara	D	CA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Feinstein, Dianne	D	CA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Allard, Wayne	R	CO	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Salazar, Ken	D	CO	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Dodd, Christopher J.	D	CT	yes	CALL THEM NOW
Lieberman, Joseph I.	I	CT	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Biden, Joseph R., Jr.	D	DE	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Carper, Thomas R.	D	DE	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Martinez, Mel	R	FL	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Nelson, Bill	D	FL	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Chambliss, Saxby	R	GA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Isakson, Johnny	R	GA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Akaka, Daniel K.	D	HI	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Inouye, Daniel K.	D	HI	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Grassley, Chuck	R	IA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Harkin, Tom	D	IA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Craig, Larry E.	R	ID	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Crapo, Mike	R	ID	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Durbin, Richard	D	IL	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Obama, Barack	D	IL	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Bayh, Evan	D	IN	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Lugar, Richard G.	R	IN	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Brownback, Sam	R	KS	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Roberts, Pat	R	KS	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Bunning, Jim	R	KY	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
McConnell, Mitch	R	KY	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Landrieu, Mary L.	D	LA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Vitter, David	R	LA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Kennedy, Edward M.	D	MA	yes	CALL THEM NOW
Kerry, John F.	D	MA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Cardin, Benjamin L.	D	MD	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Mikulski, Barbara A.	D	MD	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Snowe, Olympia J.	R	ME	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Levin, Carl	D	MI	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Stabenow, Debbie	D	MI	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Klobuchar, Amy	D	MN	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Bond, Christopher S.	R	MO	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
McCaskill, Claire	D	MO	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Cochran, Thad	R	MS	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Lott, Trent	R	MS	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Baucus, Max	D	MT	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Tester, Jon	D	MT	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Burr, Richard	R	NC	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Dole, Elizabeth	R	NC	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Conrad, Kent	D	ND	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Dorgan, Byron L.	D	ND	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Hagel, Chuck	R	NE	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Nelson, E. Benjamin	D	NE	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Gregg, Judd	R	NH	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Sununu, John E.	R	NH	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Lautenberg, Frank R.	D	NJ	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Menendez, Robert	D	NJ	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Bingaman, Jeff	D	NM	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Ensign, John	R	NV	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Reid, Harry	D	NV	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Clinton, Hillary Rodham	D	NY	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Schumer, Charles E.	D	NY	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Brown, Sherrod	D	OH	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Voinovich, George V.	R	OH	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Coburn, Tom	R	OK	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Inhofe, James M.	R	OK	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Smith, Gordon H.	R	OR	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Wyden, Ron	D	OR	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Casey, Robert P., Jr.	D	PA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Specter, Arlen	R	PA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Reed, Jack	D	RI	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Whitehouse, Sheldon	D	RI	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
DeMint, Jim	R	SC	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Graham, Lindsey	R	SC	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Johnson, Tim	D	SD	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Thune, John	R	SD	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Alexander, Lamar	R	TN	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Corker, Bob	R	TN	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Cornyn, John	R	TX	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Bennett, Robert F.	R	UT	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Hatch, Orrin G.	R	UT	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Warner, John	R	VA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Webb, Jim	D	VA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Sanders, Bernard	I	VT	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Cantwell, Maria	D	WA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Murray, Patty	D	WA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Feingold, Russell D.	D	WI	yes	CALL THEM NOW
Kohl, Herb	D	WI	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Byrd, Robert C.	D	WV	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Rockefeller, John D., IV	D	WV	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Barrasso, John	R	WY	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Enzi, Michael B.	R	WY	maybe	CALL THEM NOW

My destiny calls and I go

For reasons that barely make sense, Harry Reid seems to be capitulating on the terribly flawed FISA bill and telecom immunity. And Chris Dodd, who can't get much major media traction, is the sole Don Quixote tilting at this crappy windmill.

Digby says:

Dodd is way out on a limb on this. He's been abandoned by his party leadership and he's being forced to leave his Iowa campaign in the middle of the battle to come back to DC and do an old fashioned filibuster of this bill.

Senators Clinton, Biden and Obama said they would support a filibuster. Edwards said he supported one too. If they would agree to come back to the Senate and help Dodd talk all night, it would bring much need attention to the issue and show the Democratic base that these candidates value them. Imagine if they all (including Edwards) agreed to suspend their campaigns and come back to Washington to stand with Dodd. It would be electrifying --- and it would show the country that the Democrats are prepared to fight. (It would also give them a bunch of free TV time.)

Will any of them (all of them?) do the right thing or will they blow it off?

Go here and ask them.

Damn straight. Reid's calculus seems to be that caving on this issue will somehow, magically, leave the Dems in better position to win the Presidency in '08. Kagro X at Kos analyzes:

The House passed a relatively solid FISA reform bill, in the form of the RESTORE Act, and sent it on to the Senate. But rather than consider that bill, the Senate has considered its own (as is their wont), and now embroiled itself in the difficulties that referring that bill to both the Intelligence and Judiciary committees has created. And in the middle of those difficulties, observers have noted that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid had, under the rules at least, several options open to him, including having the Senate consider the House bill directly. It's a relatively rare thing, but not unheard of. He opted not to do so.

In fact, though, picking up the House bill is hardly unknown. Not to long ago, in fact, we were assured that this was brilliant strategy, and it was even given a catchy nickname: "ping ponging."
But today, that strategy doesn't appear to exist among the options.

Why not? Because the House bill would be vetoed, and Bush would just pull the same trick he pulled in August: send me the bill I want, or I'll veto what you send and force you to stay in session to deal with this "emergency." And that will end in capitulation anyway, so why not just save everyone the time and capitulate now?

A principled refusal to capitulate, though, forces the Congress to face an excruciating possibility: that the president is abusing his powers under the Constitution to dictate the terms of legislation to the Congress, and that that's created a serious imbalance in the separation of powers, and revealed the underlying truth that a Congress unwilling (or just unable) to impeach a president that abuses his powers and usurps theirs is completely neutered.

On the other hand, if they opt not to have this fight (or the fight over subpoenas and contempt of Congress, or signing statements, or any of several others that boil down to this same problem), in all likelihood no one of any importance or influence will ever figure exactly how neutered they've become. People may call them spineless and weak, but they won't necessarily notice that they've surrendered the legislative prerogative. That's too much of an abstraction, and even if it wasn't, it'd be too frightening a prospect for most people to contemplate, so they just won't do it.

Now, there's an argument to be made that FISA just isn't the ground on which to make this stand, and that there's some better, clearer turf. And there probably is. But if we're not going to have that fight, either, then the extent to which this gets offered as an excuse, it'll be worth keeping in mind that there's no game plan or strategy for having the fight on any other turf either, so it's ultimately a bullshit excuse.

On the upside, though, civics classes will be easier to teach in the future.

And while many of us yearn for a Mr. Smith Goes To Washington moment with Chris Dodd filibustering until his voice gives out, K-Drum thinks it isn't going to be easy:

One of the favorite tenets of the liberal blogosphere is that Harry Reid should quit playing by gentlemen's rules and call the GOP's obstructionist bluff. If Republicans want to filibuster everything short of Mother's Day resolutions, make 'em do it the old-fashioned Mr.-Smith-Goes-To-Washington way, talking until their tonsils give out. A while back I spent some time trying to find out if this was actually practical, but the Senate rules turned out to be complex enough that I just couldn't figure it out.

But now I don't feel so bad. Time's Karen Tumulty decided to consult some experts, and it turns out they don't know either:

Tom Mann of the Brookings Institution calls this idea impractical. Given the fact that Republicans could muster 41 people on most things to hold the floor, a real filibuster could go on interminably....But Norm Ornstein at the American Enterprise Insitute thinks Reid should call the Republicans' bluff, starting with holding the Senate in session five long days a week. "You have a different Senate now. Frankly, they're soft," says Ornstein. "If they had the backbone and the discipline to do it, it would work."

I don't care one damn bit about the impracticality of the idea, I care about flawed legislation that institutionalizes stupid ideas, and unconstitutional behavior. The telecoms are nothing more than profit centers whose campaign contributions render them untouchable, like the oil companies. Make them hurt, make them bleed, make them suffer.

Here's what 3 other Presidential candidates said about Dodd's proposed filibuster:

Joe Biden
San Francisco: "Will you join Sen. Chris Dodd's hold and proposed filibuster on any FISA bill that includes retroactive immunity for telecoms?"

Sen. Joe Biden: "Yes."
-Washington Post web chat

Barack Obama
"To be clear: Barack will support a filibuster of any bill that includes retroactive immunity for telecommunications companies."
-TPM Election Central

Hillary Clinton
"I am troubled by the concerns that have been raised by the recent legislation reported out of the Intelligence Committee...As matters stand now, I could not support it and I would support a filibuster absent additional information coming forward that would convince me differently."
-TPM Election Central

Do they have what it takes to stand up with him now? I'm not holding my breath.



Here's a tool for calling them.

Here's a site to email them.

Can't you hear me calling

(image from samhallas.co.uk)

Best news from the senate in some time, from Chris Dodd:

Senator and Presidential Candidate Chris Dodd today issued the following statement after a provision in the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) granting immunity to companies who participated with the Bush Administration in violating the civil liberties of millions of Americans was taken out of the Senate bill.

"I'm heartened to see that the Senate Judiciary Committee has affirmed, as I and thousands of other people around the country have, that those telecommunications companies that participated with the Bush Administration in trampling millions of Americans' civil liberties should not receive retroactive immunity for their participation. This is a victory for the rule of law and everyone who cares about preserving our Constitution.

"Getting results begins with standing for principles that you believe in, stating your position clearly, and working toward that end.

"As the debate over retroactive immunity moves to the Senate floor, I'll take this opportunity to reiterate my pledge to filibuster any legislation that grants immunity in any form to these telecom companies."

Well. Indeed. The "F" word at last from a Democrat.

Of course, the fight is only beginning, but to continue the metaphor, we seem to have won the first round. And we still have turncoat Jay Rockefeller to deal with:

Senate Judiciary Committee members yesterday angrily accused the White House of allowing the Senate Intelligence Committee to review documents on its warrantless surveillance program in return for agreeing that telecommunications companies should get immunity from lawsuits.

. . . On Friday, White House press secretary Dana Perino said that Intelligence Committee Chairman John D. Rockefeller IV (D-W.Va.) and ranking member Christopher S. Bond (R-Mo.)'s staff "showed a willingness" to include immunity in their legislation. "Because they were willing to do that, we were willing to show them some of the documents that they asked to see."

So because they were willing to shill for the administration, Rockefeller and Bond (R-Tool) were given the cookies to eat.

Jane has more over at FDL.

Let me stand next to your fire

(Image shows Air Force C-130E dropping fire retardant in Simi Valley in 2003. For the current fires, these planes aren't available. Guess why not?)

Dodd continues to show the Right Stuff:

Today in Chicago, Senator and Presidential Candidate Chris Dodd, who has been endorsed by the International Association of Fire Fighters, addressed its Occupational Health and Hazards Convention, and harshly criticized the Administration for leaving first responders and citizens in California without additional support from National Guardsmen from the state who had been deployed to Iraq.

"As you know, Governor Schwarzenegger has had to ask other states for help because so many of California's National Guard, who provide critical support to the citizens while you are fighting the fires, were deployed to Iraq," Dodd told conference attendees. "In a Dodd Administration, never again will our houses be on fire because our troops are taking fire in Iraq. Never again will our first responders be left without the support they need because our President failed to do what it took to keep our communities safe. That is why in 2008, nothing will be more important than leadership that can get results that make us stronger and more secure. That's the first responsibility of an American President."

Indeed. This guy continues to surprise in a positive way. Hillary, John, anybody, anybody?

Take my hand and say you'll follow me

Chris continues to lead:

Dear Stephen,

Let's get right to it and talk about how we stop retroactive telecommunications immunity from becoming law.

The way I see it, there are three ways to get this provision stripped from the final bill:

1.) The first step would be to make sure the idea doesn't make it out of the Senate Judiciary Committee -- where it will be considered shortly.

If we can get it stripped there, it will have to be offered as an amendment to the overall bill where it will be a lot easier to get 41 votes against retroactive immunity than 41 to sustain my filibuster if necessary.

Take a moment and call up members of the committee, let me know what they said, and join others in tracking our progress in stopping the provision right there.

http://chrisdodd.com/immunity

The other two ways:

2.) If retroactive immunity does make it out of committee, Senate leadership can honor the hold I've placed on any legislation that includes retroactive immunity.

3.) If leadership does not honor my hold, I remain committed to filibustering, and working to get the 41 votes necessary to maintain it.

This has the potential to be a long fight -- so let's build a solid foundation for our effort today by asking members of the Judiciary Committee to vote against any FISA bill that includes retroactive amnesty.

http://chrisdodd.com/immunity

I'd like to see a little more spine, frankly, on these issues. People tell us they want to lead, but a little leadership right now would certainly be welcomed on these questions.

I don't want to, but I'm not afraid to do this alone.

Chris

And from Obama, more leadership, by, well, following Chris:

To be clear: Barack will support a filibuster of any bill that includes retroactive immunity for telecommunications companies.

Time for Hillary and the rest to stop with weasel words and step up to the plate. We on the Progressive Left (as opposed to the LieberDem left) take spying on Americans and telecom amnesty seriously.

In fact, it may even be a deal breaker. Please pay attention, and lead, if you want us to follow. You aren't Pied Pipers, we're not children nor rats. We're sentient beings who care about the direction of our country. And we won't put up with crap from our candidates.

More from Chris Dodd. Links go to pages with Senators' office phone #s:

Individual Senator Rundown

Name	Party	State	Position	Take Action
Sessions, Jeff	R	AL	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Kyl, Jon	R	AZ	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Feinstein, Dianne	D	CA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Biden, Joseph R., Jr.	D	DE	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Grassley, Chuck	R	IA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Durbin, Richard	D	IL	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Brownback, Sam	R	KS	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Kennedy, Edward M.	D	MA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Cardin, Benjamin L.	D	MD	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Schumer, Charles E.	D	NY	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Coburn, Tom	R	OK	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Specter, Arlen	R	PA	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Whitehouse, Sheldon	D	RI	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Graham, Lindsey	R	SC	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Cornyn, John	R	TX	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Hatch, Orrin G.	R	UT	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Leahy, Patrick J.	D	VT	maybe	CALL THEM NOW
Feingold, Russell D.	D	WI	no	CALL THEM NOW
Kohl, Herb	D	WI	maybe	CALL THEM NOW

Telephone line, give me some time, I'm living in twilight

Chris Dodd has shown some real leadership, unlike the actual leadership in the Democratic Party. While he is a long shot for the nomination, Dodd has certainly won some serious points with his latest move to filibuster the deeply flawed Telecom Amnesty FISA bill:



From an email

Dear Stephen,

Are you willing to go to the mat to restore the Constitution?

Just last night, we heard there are plans to disregard Senator Dodd's intention to place a hold on a FISA bill that includes amnesty for telecommunications companies.

That would be a pretty extraordinary move, but Chris Dodd has pledged to stop this horrible bill any way he can.

So if the hold is not honored, he is prepared to go to the Senate floor and filibuster.

Rolling back the Bush Administration assault on the rule of law has been a major focus of Chris Dodd's work in the Senate -- and it's also a centerpiece in his campaign for President.

Commentor Shoephone adds:

Chris Dodd is a real man. Harry Reid is a diseased little weasel.

I would be quite happy with an Edwards/Dodd ticket.

Meanwhile, the Courage Campaign and Act For Change issue a challenge to another Senator from here in CA:

In August, California Senator Dianne Feinstein helped the Bush administration push through Congress a bill that made the warrantless wiretapping of Americans legal. Many Democrats -- with Feinstein leading the way -- voted for the bill because they feared they would be seen as soft on terrorism if they stood up for the Constitution.

The bill only authorized warrantless wiretapping for six months, and now Bush is pressuring the Congress to renew the bill and add language that would grant retroactive immunity to the telecom companies who were complicit in his illegal spying program.

Bush wants amnesty for the telecom companies to thwart civil liberties lawsuits and cover-up his own lawbreaking. If these lawsuits aren't allowed to go forward, we may never know the extent of the Bush program to spy on Americans.

Urge Senator Feinstein to stand up for civil liberties and not let the telcos off the hook.

DiFi always takes the side of Big Business against the people's interests, so let's see what this does to move her closer to reality. But is it all really about cash?

Wired has this about Jay Rockefeller's principled position vis-a-vis telecom immunity:

Top Verizon executives, including CEO Ivan Seidenberg and President Dennis Strigl, wrote personal checks to Rockefeller totaling $23,500 in March, 2007. Prior to that apparently coordinated flurry of 29 donations, only one of those executives had ever donated to Rockefeller (at least while working for Verizon).

In fact, prior to 2007, contributions to Rockefeller from company executives at AT&T and Verizon were mostly non-existent.

But that changed around the same time that the companies began lobbying Congress to grant them retroactive immunity from lawsuits seeking billions for their alleged participation in secret, warrantless surveillance programs that targeted Americans.

So Reckefeller is willing to sell us out for $23k? I had no idea Senators could be bought that cheaply.

And Jane at FireDogLake adds this:

Harry Reid himself took $22,000 in contributions from AT&T between 2001-2006. OpenSecrets reports that he also owns between $15,001 and $50,000 worth of stock in Dow Jones U.S. Telecommunications Sector Index Fund, the largest holdings of which are AT&T and Verizon.

Seems too cheap. Maybe we can figure out a way to funnel some $$ to these idiots to insure some loyalty.

Bastards. (Not Chris Dodd, he's riding a white horse right now).