...however, it's clearly apparent that despite cowardly fears of political damage to the Democratic party that could ensue, we cannot be made whole as a nation, until those who eviscerated and desecrated the Constitution in the previous administration are brought to justice.

For torture.

For warrantless wiretapping.

For indefinite detention without trial.

All values that are the antithesis of what America is.

Call them show trials if you will, Bush/Cheney lovers.

Most will call it cleansing.

They'll do something about it when monkeys fly out of Harry Reid's sycophantic butt.

that this should shock the pants off any American is depressing in and of itself. How many times must we witness illegal and/or immoral behavior from our Great Leaders before we begin to say,

"Oh, right, right. These people are not to be trusted. Man, I keep forgetting about that."

Here's what would surprise me; that our government--elected officials and civil servants both--behaved ethically. That would startle the hell out of me.

Frankly, I don't believe that Congress was unaware of such stuff that was (and we all know is) going on; I think they deliberately don't want to know (at least the details) so, at some point, they can claim,

"No shit! I didn't know that!"

or, in the aftermath of some attack on Der Homeland, they can say,

"Oh, my friends, this is why we authorized many years ago a CIA program that examines your browsing habits. It's been clear to us all--and for quite some time--that the typical American's online search for pornography is the source of all our Evils. Why else do those Talibanners--those sign-making fanatics--hate us and our, um, porn-loving, freedom-seeking, porn-loving ways?"

That, and,

"so, you like naked women? But do you know your credit score? You don't?! Well, here's a program ..."

And this is how all bases are covered in the US of A where our business is, well, business.

Republicans should be as angry as Democrats are about the breach, and mount an immediate investigation into exactly what the secret program was, and why it wasn't disclosed to Congress.

Oh, that's rich. My stomach hurts from laughing. That was a good one, Joan. Republicans will do what they always do: equivocate, backpedal, say that we shouldn't be dwelling on the past, and try to strong arm the weakest Democrats (read: 80% of them) into ignoring this. And no, Pelosi won't be getting an apology from anybody. Don't you know that only pussies and liberals admit when they're wrong.

What this will test is whether the Democrats have any hope of growing a spine. I pray they will take legislation investigating this and ram it up Obama's backside, veto or no veto. But I doubt my prayers will be answered.

'Two things are clear: First, Newt Gingrich and other Republicans owe House Speaker Nancy Pelosi an apology for demanding she resign or be impeached when she said in May that the CIA had regularly misled Congress on intelligence and interrogation operations.'

Many in Gleen's blog have accused Pelosi of lying about this, so I think they also owe Pelosi an apology.

However congressional members fo the Intlligence committee need to take the CIa to task and aks tougher questions and press the CIa for more information The CIA just has to much power, and always has had.

It's a real stretch to say Obama is continuing Bush tactics,

Yes, they'll continue to act like the useless millionaire's club that they are. Eight years of open fascism and now a genuine lemon we cannot believe in. Expecting Washington to correct any part of itself is a joke.

The States ought to reclaim power from the Federal government until the Feds deliver the mail and administer the National Parks and defend the coastline. And that would be all. They're shot through with corruption and this is yet another instance that will prove it.

Timothy: Of course they don't want to know... "Plausible deniability" means never having to say you're sorry!

Joan: More like this, less about Jacko, Palin and cable news appearances please! This is the kind of stuff that is worthy of the frontpage of Salon. (Need I mention that Camille Paglia's nonsensical reactionary blubbering is NOT?!?!) Just think about how much the Dems in the Senate have further neutered the cap-and-trade and health care proposals while most salaried Salon writers have been too busy going gaga over the one-gloved, kid-diddling, pill-freak and Mark Sanford's Argentine snore-omance to notice... Think about how little attention the calls for accountability over war crimes, torture, indefinite detention, and domestic spying put out by the ACLU and other groups have been getting outside of GG's UT blog. What a total waste of a potentially powerful political-journalistic resource! (Not just on the frontpage and Salon as a whole, but in particular, very noticeably in the Gossip Shack... errr... War Room!)

You may have missed the boat on Froomkin, but this is the kind of story Marcy Wheeler could do a bang up job on.

bernbart, that those Crips never made it to your house?

Many in Gleen's blog have accused Pelosi of lying about this, so I think they also owe Pelosi an apology.

I don't even recall that this was ever discussed at Gleen's blog.

It's a real stretch to say Obama is continuing Bush tactics

Oh, it's not any Goddamn such thing. You know as well as the rest of us--six months now!--that Obama is continuing the rancid tradition of the American Imperial Presidency.

berbart, if I knew where you lived, why, I'd come over and ... have coffee with you, and maybe read a page or two of the NYTimes.

The only thing that will be shocking is if Congress does anything about this. They have an unbroken track record of declining to assert their instutional power and role regarding these matters. Is anyone surprised that the Bush intelligence apparatus was up to much more than we were led to believe? If you are, go read Glenn Greenwald's archives for the last several years.

As long as public apathy about these abuses continues, nothing will ever be done. Politicians respond to the voters.