by Glen Greenwald has an excellent piece up about the FISA amendments that are about to expire, the Bush administration’s bullying scare tactics that got them passed in the first place, and how the "imminent" danger no longer seems important to the president.
If the threat isn’t present, why shouldn’t we let the invasive surveillance measures lapse permanently? If it is, no gap in time should be allowed.
What’s a Congress to do? How about standing up for what’s best for the country? How about showing just a hint of personal and political courage? How about "making change" by reining in a runaway security apparatus?
Glen’s conclusion:
Any rational person has long ago given up the hope that Congressional Democrats will stand for any actual political convictions, but the most basic sense of personal pride and human dignity — which one thought was an intrinsic part of human nature — would preclude their capitulation today. If they don’t stand up to the White House and Senate Republicans under these circumstances, one might as well accept that they never will do so.
