In a new television ad put out by the CDW, Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN) is being portrayed as the candidate who will protect your privacy. However, he took a very decisive stand against privacy when he voted in favor of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act Amendment Act ("FAA") bill earlier this week. Although his Democratic counterpart, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, voted against the final version of the bill, it did pass and was signed into law by President George W. Bush on July 11, 2008.
By voting against the Dodd Amendment which would have removed the provision for telecom immunity from the bill, against the Specter Amendment which would have limited retroactive immunity, against the Bingaman Amendment that called for a stay on pending cases against certain telecommunications companies, and yea for FAA, Sen. Coleman is revealing his allegiance to companies who have potentially violated the privacy of ordinary citizens via illegal search and seizure.
Together with journalists Naomi Klein and Chris Hedges; The Nation; attorneys David Nevin, Scott McKay, Dan Arshack and Sylvia Royce; organizations including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and the Global Fund for Women; the ACLU has filed suit in the U.S. District Court challenging the FAA's violation of the First and Fourth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution, and the principle of separation of powers.
See how your senator voted here.
rate
email
print
link to this page
Comments: 29
If so, it seems unfair to punish them for that, unless I'm missing something.
There has to be a way to penalize the people who are responsible for ordering the law breaking, not just the common soldier. That being said, like soldiers, people and companies have an obligation to disobey orders when they are known to be illegal. So some form of action has to be taken so the next time it happens everyone will know how to act.
Joe T. is correct in that Sen. Obama voted for FAA. What Joe doesn't say, though, is that Obama also voted in favor of all of the amendments listed above, which separates his vote from Coleman's a great deal.
Amy Klobuchar and Hillary voted against FISA, maybe we just need all women candidates. It's not too late, ya know.
This Republican, Norm Coleman, is only bad insofar as he deliberately states one thing and does another, but the Democrats promised to oppose Bush and have so far failed to do so.
I will vote for Obama, and I advise all citizens to do the same, but I would vote against any scumbag legislator who is deliberately allowing the corporations to slowly take over our form of government. This is as deplorable as what happened in Argentina, where a whole political class betrayed the Argentinan people in the Nineties so that they could make out like bandits. Only 1 per cent of the population benefited. What happened afterward has been called the sacking of Argentina, or ¨social genocide.¨
And what is happening here is the Argentina-zation of the United States of America, under the guise of a perpetual war on terror. This is a phony war, nothing but a glib rhetorical umbrella for a host of malversations.
With regard to "the Bod," I would be surprised if a majority of Minnesotans actually did that again - but I'll be surprised if he doesn't run, given the apparent size of his ego.
Excuse me, but the Telecoms were put between a rock and a hard place and did the right thing. They were "asked" by the administration to help defend the citizens of the United States against potential terrorists and given the legal opinion that their co-operation was consistant with law.
To allow ambulance chaser from the ACLU to launch class-action lawsuits would have a chilling impact on future intelligence efforts.
As for Sen. Amy Klobuchar, isn't this the same Amy Klobuchar who refused to prosecute three DFL Minneapolis City Council members - thus forcing the Federal Attorney to become involved in Minneapolis politics?
In other words isn't this the same Amy Klobuchar who refused to do the job the people of Hennipin County hired her to do?
The club includes Britain, France, Norway, Denmark, Germany.....shall I continue?
Oh, but then the ever progressive Sweden also implemented school vouchers 16 years ago as well as a partially privatized Social Security.
So how come Sweden does things that the American Left is afraid to do? I guess over there - fear does not play such a major role in leftist politics.
The answer is YES. THAT Klobuchar.
I've thanked Coleman personally for his stand-up vote.
When FISA was written our nation was not threatened by people who kill 3,000 civilians on a clear blue day in September.
Every other civilized country has modified their electronic eavesdropping statutes to reflect new realities. Only America refueses to progress beyond 1970's social activism.
They solicite bribes, extort money from developers, and steal from the coffer to such an extent that the federal prosecutor has to step in --- and what do we hear about?
Coleman's discount on a basement apartment.
If it was New York, the Democrats would be praising Coleman's deal as "rent control".