It’s important that we tell Obama and Clinton that they need to do more than simply “support” Senator Dodd on this. They need to be down on that floor actively participating in the filibuster! They need to prevent the 10 Democrats who can bring the vote to the floor from doing so!

No more of this talk of immunizing the Telcoms…retroactively or prospectively. Like everyone else they need to obey the Constitution.And if the Bush Administration has been telling them otherwise, then nail them as well with indictments of misprision of felony!

The question of how to offer the telcoms some protection from prosecution was discussed on TheNextHurrah.com and someone suggested it could be done by Congress or in a court case. I said, the question is which is the better venue (to achieve the goal properly). Well, Congress took a whack at it and it’s been batted down with some vigor — and for legal reasons I wasn’t aware of at the start. Now, they need to redo FISA without immunity, sticking to the core issues of FISA and in one big court case the question of immunity needs to be handled with regard to some specific instance. Bring the case in the 9th District (out west) and let’s see how it comes out. If the telcoms can convincingly argue for immunity, then maybe they deserve it for this one specific situation. But, of course, it can’t ever be a precursor to anything else.

In the end we need our Constitutional Rights protected (privacy in the spying case) and we need to get the goods on Bushies.

I should add, that as a lawyer, John Edwards should make a statement about how this could be handled best. He could blow Obama and Clinton out of the water (on this issue) if he does it well.

I’m going to call. And I’m going to watch Obama and Clinton very carefully. Be leaders, instead of simulated leaders, please.

Here’s part an interesting Newsday story.

BY GLENN THRUSH | glenn.thrush@newsday.com
October 24, 2007

WASHINGTON – Hillary Rodham Clinton is adopting a unique strategy to tamp down expectations she’ll win the Iowa caucuses – suggesting that sexism will create a glass ceiling in the Hawkeye State.

In an interview with The Des Moines Register, Clinton singled out Iowa and Mississippi as two states that have never elected top officials who are women. She called Iowa a “special burden” for her campaign and said it was her “hardest” state.

“special burden”?

Well, isn’t that special.

“They bring sorrow, tears and blood, their regular trademark.” It could be about Africa fifty years ago, it could be Iraq today, or New Orleans.

Folks, it’s all been said before. It’s all there.

And that is to strip out this provision of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act as it’s been rewritten. It that doesn’t work here; if this bill leaves the Judiciary with this provision still intact then I’ll be filibustering this bill.

Chickenshit?

WTF – you’ve gotta be kidding me.

They both said they’d support a filibuster. What the hell are you on about here?

Obama said he would support a filibuster unless there was a compromise. He never said he would filibuster any version with Telecom immunity. Isn’t that a pretty important point.

[I]f you’re going to break a filibuster then you need to have those 41 votes to do so. And it may come to that, if in fact this legislation, this language in the FISA bill remains.

WTF – you’ve gotta be kidding me.

They both said they’d support a filibuster. What the hell are you on about here?

Joel