Feingold doesn’t mention this directly, but his reputation four months from his re-election matters here. He voted against Riegle-Neal, which consolidated the banking sector. He voted against repealing Glass-Steagall. He voted against TARP repeatedly. He has been a lonely voice for sanity in the financial markets, and he obviously feels that going against that to support a half-measure doesn’t make sense for him, especially not with an election coming in November.

Feingold also charges that Senate Democrats and the White House have “bargained” with him by telling him to accept the bill as it is, not by moving it in his preferred direction. That’s not a bargain at all, that’s an ultimatum.

After a few more amendments to the Wall Street reform bill this evening (and a defeat for the Whitehouse amendment to allow states to cap interest rates on credit cards), Harry Reid set up a vote for cloture for today. He expects Arlen Specter to be on hand, and to vote for cloture, so that brings him within one vote of getting to 60. But Russ Feingold and Maria Cantwell, the two Democrats who voted against invoking cloture, are digging in. They want changes to the bill that would strengthen it, particularly around derivatives. Will this day devolve again into “Lord of the Flies” on the Senate floor?

A second high-profile Senator has slammed the “trigger” idea favored by Sen. Olympia Snowe and, according to published reports, the White House, saying that a bill without a real public option would have a hard time picking up his support. Appearing on Face The Nation, Sen. Russ Feingold joined Sen. Jay Rockefeller in opposing the trigger idea, calling it “an invitation to the insurance industry” to keep themselves in line for a couple years, only to find new ways to abuse the system thereafter.

An article in today’s Washington Post by Karen de Young (H/T Spencer Ackerman) highlights the determination to race to catastrophe by the Obama administration. In an ever-ending reconsideration and analysis of Afghanistan party, the Obama administration is said to be internally assessing the progress of the Afghan-Pakistan War over the next few weeks.

Since I began serving in the U.S. Senate, I have consistently heard how our broken health care system affects Americans. I have heard about sky-rocketing premium increases that small business owners are paying in order to continue providing health care to their employees … I have heard from people with “pre-existing conditions” who simply can’t get coverage … And I have heard absolutely heart-breaking stories from retirees who have had to

Sen. Russ Feingold recorded a message for all of you to say thanks for all of your efforts on the FISA bill. The outpouring of support from you and across the country, in letters and e-mails and phone calls and the blogs has been absolutely fantastic. It really made a difference, as we mounted a challenge this week that almost nobody thought could work.

Senators will not vote on the FISA amendments until after they ride in Fourth of July parades back home. Perhaps you could give them a message as they ride by. After all, what could be more patriotic than celebrating the Fourth of July by standing up for the Constitution?

Civil liberties concerns are tough arguments to make sometimes, especially to Americans who don’t pay attention to detail and nuance, and who are clearly more than willing to trade anything away for illusory security promises. Sen. Russ Feingold has stood out over the last few years as a consistent voice of doubt regarding unfettered increase of executive power, and of reason when everyone around him is screeching for haste and whatever is polling well.

45 years ago, John F. Kennedy gave a speech in Berlin, urging those who do not understand freedom to come to Berlin. Steny Hoyer and his Democratic colleagues who are busy carrying water for BushCo’s warrantless wiretapping and telecom immunity might want to listen to what Kennedy had to say.

The one consistent thing I’ve noticed about the FISA issue is this:  people are disgusted by capitulation.  And, more than anything, they want a way to channel that frustration into an action that could make a difference. For some reason, elected folks inside the Beltway don’t seem to understand this. They have miscalculated on how many people in America are paying attention to civil liberties concerns these days. And it is our job to make certain that they learn just how badly they have misjudged this. It is one of the many reasons we are working so hard to build incentive through our Blue America FISA actions. (You can donate here.) Beyond that, though, we need more ways to let them know how important this is to all of us.  It’s time to take last year’s You Work For Us Summer Tour and kick it up a notch.  And I’ve got a few ideas on how to do just that.