September 12, 2008
Barack Obama supported and voted in favor of the recent wiretapping bill that grants immunity to the telephone companies who didn't bother to ask government agents if they had a warrant to look at telephone records of individuals they were curious about. They just handed them over. You're the government, so you can't possibly be doing something illegal.
Republicans-- who seem to believe in the ruthless application of the law in all instances-- or say they do-- should be screaming bloody murder. But we know all about the Republicans. But Obama?
If the government's actions were legal, there is no need for immunity. If they were not illegal, then the Senate should initiate proceedings against the Bush administration. They should bloody well impeach him and indict the attorney-general.
We know why Obama voted in favour of the bill. He was terrified of the Republicans portraying him as "soft" on terror if he didn't. Here's my fantasy: Obama rails against the bill and tells Americans that he is standing up for the rule of law and for the constitution, and all those Americans who just can't stand the thought of the federal government intruding on their sacred rights-- like the right to own sub-machine guns-- say Amen and vote for him.