Letters to the Editor

Targeting Steny Hoyer for his contempt for the rule of law Efforts are under way to disrupt the plans of the House Democratic leadership to give the president warrantless eavesdropping powers and the telecom industry full-fledged amnesty. Glenn Greenwald [2008-06-17]

• Jebbie on Hoyer's denials:

  Hoyer is going to claim that this bill does not give amnesty to telecoms because it allows the issue to be settled by either the FISA court or a Federal court. Although the Bill's specific language is unknown to me at this time, I would be willing to bet that the language is of a nature that guarantees either the SA court or the Federal court will declare that the telecoms should receive amnesty. From what I've read, all they will have to do is provide a note from the administration claiming that their activities were legal and they're off the hook.

  PRECISELY. They're denying they're giving immunity because they're going to stick to their claim that their "compromise" bill doesn't give immunity. It just tells the Federal Court to dismiss the suits IF they had written requests from the administration to do this and if the administration told them it was legal (which we already know happened).

  They're dressing up their guaranteed amnesty in a form they can claim isn't amnesty. It's amnesty every bit as much as the Rockefeller/Cheney bill, as dismissal of the lawsuits is guaranteed.

  The deceit on top of the bill itself makes it all the more infuriating.

  -- GlennGreenwald
  [Read GlennGreenwald's other letters]
  Permalink Flag Tuesday, June 17, 2008 01:12 PM
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