One of the last things Congress did before adjourning for the August recess was to pass the Protect America Act, which clarifies the authority of the Executive Branch to intercept without a court order the communications of suspected terrorists who are foreign nationals, located abroad. It represents nothing more than the preservation of the original effect of FISA, updated to reflect changing technology. The legislation lasts just 6 months, which means Congress must quickly consider a longer extension.
As Rob Bluey has pointed out, the left is hard at work concocting a fiction about politicization of the issue. They ignore the fact that Democrats knew of the problem for months and chose not to act, they pulled the rug out from under Director of National Intelligence Michael McConnell when he was slated to testify about it, and once again drafted a 'Democrats-only' solution with no Republican inputl--which ultimately forced them to pass a Republican alternative rather than a bipartisan response.
In the weeks since passage, the Democratic base has focused much of its anger on the Democrats who supported the measure. The Post's EJ Dionne talked about why the Democratic leadership caved. The Huffington Post asks whether we are a country 'that allows fear and vague threats to browbeat our leaders' into passing laws that 'violate our Constitution.' And Markos "Screw Them" Moulitsas called the Democrats who had voted for the measure "cowards."
Of the 41 House Democrats who voted for the FISA extension, 13 are so-called 'majority makers'--Democratic freshmen who flipped GOP seats to the Democratic column. At DailyKos, there's talk of lining up primary opponents for to challenge those Democrats who sit in safe seats. And Soren Dayton finds others on the left who want to go further. He says they're getting ready to eat their own by choosing to fight on an issue where Democrats are split and independents side with the president:
Seventy-nine percent (79%) of Republicans believe that allowing the government to intercept such calls makes the nation safer. Forty-eight percent (48%) of Democrats agree along with 53% of those not affiliated voters.
This looks like a no-win situation for Democrats, but the party's base is unwilling to accept a continuation of the status quo--which they believe puts too much power in the hands of an administration they do not trust. There's a great deal of pressure on Congressional Democrats to create a new requirement for court orders, which will significantly undermine the ability of our intelligence agencies to discover and prevent attacks planned against the U.S.. And because the 'fix' passed by Congress lasts just a few months, Democrats will be forced to take up the issue again in the heightened atmosphere of a presidential race.
In the latest edition of CQ Radio, Ed Morrissey hosts Representative Pete Hoekstra, the Ranking Republican on the House Intelligence Committee and a strong proponent of updating FISA. The interview is extremely illuminating. Go have a listen.
