Pirate's Cove

I would say that Russ Feingold has zero shot at being the 2008 Democratic Rented Presidential Candidate position (via NewsMax):

Democrats distanced themselves Monday from Wisconsin Sen. Russell Feingold’s effort to censure President Bush over domestic spying.

Feingold’s fellow Democrats did just that Monday, with several saying they wanted first to see the Senate Intelligence Committee finish an investigation of the warrantless wiretapping program that Bush authorized as part of his war on terrorism.

Asked at a news conference whether he would vote for the censure resolution, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada declined to endorse it and said he hadn’t read it.

Sen. Joe Lieberman, D-Conn., said he had not read it either and wasn’t inclined simply to scold the president.”I’d prefer to see us solve the problem,” Lieberman told reporters. Across the Capitol, reaction was similar.

Feingold’s resolution drew empathy but no outright support from Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi.

Pelosi “understands Senator Feingold’s frustration that the facts about the NSA domestic surveillance program have not been disclosed appropriately to Congress,” her office said in a statement. “Both the House and the Senate must fully investigate the program and assign responsibility for any laws that may have been broken.”

So, that would be a “Nay,” Russ.

Cheney dared other Democrats to support Feingold’s resolution.

“The outrageous proposition that we ought to protect our enemies’ ability to communicate as it plots against America poses a key test of our Democratic leaders,” he said. “Do they support the extreme and counterproductive antics of a few or do they support a lawful program vital to the security of this nation?

“The American people already made their decision,” Cheney added. “They agree with the president.”

Added Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist: “Senator Feingold’s time would be better spent putting forth constructive ideas rather than using cheap political tricks that compromise America’s national security by sending a dangerous signal of disunity around the globe.”

So far, I have yet to see any hard proof that any American citizen or organization has been illegally spied on by the NSA. And, that whole thing where Bush said “Law enforcement officers need a federal judge’s permission to wiretap a foreign terrorist’s phone, a federal judge’s permission to track his calls, or a federal judge’s permission to search his property. Officers must meet strict standards to use any of these tools. And these standards are fully consistent with the Constitution of the U.S.” ? Well, the National Security Agency is not a law enforcement agency.

And, you know? When I really think about it, I really do not give a rats ass if the NSA spied on American citizens who have ties with terrorism. We used to have people who cared more about protecting the United States then protecting the Rights of those who would harm her. FDR was a raging Socialist, at least by his actions. But, he didn’t care about the Rights of Japanese Americans. He threw them in camps. The man had balls.

And, finally, the program was started under Clinton, in 1998, as Truthout proved (by accident.)

A bit more: when Lefties start claiming victory with a C-SPAN poll, it was DU’d.