Just-resigned Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor said that attacks on the judiciary by some Republican leaders pose a direct threat to our constitutional freedoms. She warns Of "Beginnings" Of Dictatorship, could she be right? Lets Talk.
Reporters who write about government surveillance could be prosecuted under proposed legislation that would solidify the administration’s eavesdropping authority, according to some legal analysts.
An aide to the bill’s chief author, Sen. Mike DeWine, an Ohio Republican, said that is not the intention of the legislation.
“It in no way applies to reporters — in any way, shape or form,” said Mike Dawson, a senior policy adviser to DeWine, responding to an inquiry Friday afternoon. “If a technical fix is necessary, it will be made.”
The Associated Press obtained a copy of the draft of the legislation, which could be introduced as soon as next week.
The draft would add to the criminal penalties for anyone who “intentionally discloses information identifying or describing” the Bush administration’s terrorist surveillance program or any other eavesdropping program conducted under a 1978 surveillance law.
Under the boosted penalties, those found guilty could face fines of up to $1 million, 15 years in jail, or both.
Kate Martin, director of the Center for National Security Studies, said the measure is broader than any existing laws. She said, for example, that the language does not specify that the information has to be harmful to national security or classified.
“The bill would make it a crime to tell the American people that the president is breaking the law, and the bill could make it a crime for the newspapers to publish that fact,” said Martin, a civil liberties advocate.
DeWine is co-sponsoring the bill with Republican Sens. Olympia Snowe of Maine, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, and Chuck Hagel of Nebraska.
The White House and Republican Senate leaders have indicated general support, but the bill could face changes as it works its way through Congress.
With the information that we now have about the Pentagon spying on us. This leads me only to believe that we are headed in the direction of a dictatorship.
We are deprived of true medical aid, like that of which the Congress gets, are they any more deserving of such perks, than are we the Armerican citizens?
We spend time picking over which party is best for us, when they both have sold us down the drain.
We stop for a minute and find all jobs and security that we held so dear have been outsourced to overseas countries, because of NAFTA, CAFTA, and WTO. We say, like robots that we love this party or this President. We need to take a step back and see that both parties, one under Clinton and one under Bush have gave this countries jobs, and our well being over to the companies who fly as fast as they can to third workd countires, where labor, safety and laws are relaxed.
Making their concerns with the all mighty dollar, more important than we are. Wake up America and smell the coffee. We never gave our approval for such globalization. This type deal was made by big business, our Presidents, our Congress, our Bankers, and the Rich.
You and I had nothing to do with this. We walked around arguing about Clintons sex affairs and faught over the fact that Bush led us into an uncalled for war, while our jobs were just given away by the people with the money, for more money and cheaper labor. Then the products were shipped right back to this country at a cheaper rate and we thought we were given a bargain, until the lay offs started.
Now we hear about Bush, the Congress and the Senate wanting to create a new law to justify the law that our President broke. Why can't we all get it at one time and remove such people in November, before it's to late.
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