Bush and Spying
When I first heard about President Bush ‘wire taping’ calls (from U.S. citizens to overseas) I thought that sounded pretty bad – that the President shouldn’t just have the power to go out and wiretap calls made by American citizens anytime he wants to. Then I thought about the pictures on the Internet of hooded terrorists standing behind hostages holding swords and changed my mind. I thought, Well, if the President says has to have those wiretaps to catch those thugs that’s fine with me.
Then I read about the secret court the President can ask to approve secret wiretaps and how it’s approved, something like, 7000 wiretaps over the last twenty years and only turned down four. So, then, I was asking myself, if President Bush could have gotten those wiretaps that way why didn’t he? After all, if wiretaps are good to catch terrorists, wiretaps with a little oversight – and a little of ‘checks and balances’ built in – would be even better.
I still want President Bush to have those wiretaps. But I would also like him to explain why he doesn’t want to use that court. And it’s troubling that – so far – he hasn’t done that.
Bush and Spying
When I first heard about President Bush ‘wire taping’ calls (from U.S. citizens to overseas) I thought that sounded pretty bad – that the President shouldn’t just have the power to go out and wiretap calls made by American citizens anytime he wants to. Then I thought about the pictures on the Internet of hooded terrorists standing behind hostages holding swords and changed my mind. I thought, Well, if the President says has to have those wiretaps to catch those thugs that’s fine with me.
Then I read about the secret court the President can ask to approve secret wiretaps and how it’s approved, something like, 7000 wiretaps over the last twenty years and only turned down four. So, then, I was asking myself, if President Bush could have gotten those wiretaps that way why didn’t he? After all, if wiretaps are good to catch terrorists, wiretaps with a little oversight – and a little of ‘checks and balances’ built in – would be even better.
I still want President Bush to have those wiretaps. But I would also like him to explain why he doesn’t want to use that court. And it’s troubling that – so far – he hasn’t done that.