Quickies

- Public Policy Polling shows Obama with a 8 point lead over McCain in Ohio (48-40).

- South Carolina State Senator Kevin Bryant does GOP bigots proud.

- Glenn Greenwald explains the real reason for the Democrats' cave on telecom amnesty: The convention is brought to you by AT&T!

- Brownsox at Daily Kos says the race for Ky.'s U.S. Senate seat may be very competitive:

KY-Sen: Speaking of fundraising news, Bruce Lunsford is committed to keeping pace with fundraising juggernaut Mitch McConnell. Largely through personal donations to his own campaign, Lunsford matched McConnell's stunning $3 million take from last quarter.

Quickies

- Net neutrality looks to be on track

- The GOP's Sen. Chuck Hagel is going to Iraq with Obama.

- ACLU is suing over the new FISA law:

President Bush's signature had barely dried on the FISA Amendments Act, which the Senate approved Wednesday, when the American Civil Liberties Union announced that it would mount a constitutional challenge to the new law, claiming that it violates the First and Fourth Amendments.

4th Amendment dead

Be sure to thank this guy for caving to Bush in his hard work in letting telecommunications companies off the hook.

AP:

WASHINGTON - Bowing to President Bush's demands, the Senate approved and
sent the White House a bill Wednesday to overhaul bitterly disputed rules on
secret government eavesdropping and shield telecommunications companies from
lawsuits complaining they helped the U.S. spy on Americans.

Enjoy the Fourth Amendment for one more night

As Glenn Greenwald and Christi Hardin Smith are telling Mike Malloy Show fill-in host Sam Seder, the Senate is ready to pass Jay Rockefeller's Kill The Fourth Amendment Act tomorrow, in order to help the Democrats achieve a perfect track record in caving to the Bush administration.

So if you have any embarrassing ailments or unpleasant stuff you want to talk about on the phone without someone listening in, tonight's the night to do it.

Rockefeller's "Kill the Fourth Amendment" act coming to Senate vote

Jonathan Turley was just on the radio saying that Jay has been adamant that immunity for telecommunications companies that aided the White House in warrantless wiretaps be in the bill and that it be considered by the Senate —which may happen as early as tomorrow.

My favorite senator, Russ Feingold, D- Wisconsion is pledging, along with Sen. Chris Dodd, D - Connecticut, to filibuster this cave to the Bush administration.

From their statement:

We will oppose efforts to end debate on this bill as long as it provides retroactive immunity for the telecommunications companies that may have participated in the President's warrantless wiretapping program, and as long as it fails to protect the privacy of law-abiding Americans.

Senate Majority leader Harry Reid says he will back Dodd and Feingold.

---

As always, the guy who knows this issue inside and out is Salon's Glenn Greenwald. He offers the most comprehensive and updated coverage.

In his latest, he takes on Democratic House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer's claim that the House Dems' cave is a "significant victory":

In other words, Democrats achieved a "significant victory" because -- by giving Republicans everything they demanded -- Republicans are no longer able to criticize Democrats on this issue. What a shrewd strategy: "if we comply with all their demands, then they can't criticize us for anything." That's the Democratic Party's plan for winning, according to Hoyer.

Kill the Fourth Amendment Act clears the House

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

---

Scratch that one off the Bill of Rights soon, based on what the House did today.

HuffPo

WASHINGTON — The House Friday easily approved a compromise bill setting new electronic surveillance rules that effectively shield telecommunications companies from lawsuits arising from the government's terrorism-era warrantless eavesdropping on phone and computer lines in this country.

The bill, which was passed on a 293-129 vote, does more than just protect the telecoms. The update to the 30-year-old Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act is an attempt to balance privacy rights with the government's responsibility to protect the country against attack, taking into account changes in telecommunications technologies.

Most Republicans voted for it. Lots of Democratic opposition, but enough Blue Dog/DLC/corporatist "Dems" broke ranks to pass it.

I usually have a lot of respect for Rep. Nick Rahall (due to his consistent opposition to the Iraq war from Day 1), but he voted the wrong way this time.

This moves to the Senate next, where Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-AT&T has been championing immunity for telecomunications corporations and is one of the biggest backers of this bad legislation.

On a completely unrelated note, guess who made #3 and #4 on Jay's top 5 contributors for 2003-2008, according to opensecrets.com?

AT&T Inc $33,000
Verizon Communications $31,500

Senate caves to White House, Telecoms

From Salon:

The Senate voted Tuesday to shield from lawsuits telecommunications companies that helped the government eavesdrop on their customers without court permission after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

After nearly two months of stops and starts, the Senate rejected by a vote of 31 to 67 a move to strip away a grant of retroactive legal immunity for the companies.

President Bush has promised to veto any new surveillance bill that does not protect the companies that helped the government in its warrantless wiretapping program, arguing that it is essential if the private sector is to give the government the help it needs.

West Virginia's Senator Rockefeller just received a strong rebuke on the Senate floor regarding his work on this deal from Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt.

The House is preparing to take up reconsideration of the bill. DailyKos details Judiciary Chair John Conyers' letter to White House Counsel Fred Fielding.

Throughout this past year, the Administration has sounded a drumbeat that Congress enact the Administration’s request for amendments to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). However, during this same time, the Administration has denied to Congress essential documents and information that would permit Congress, in the exercise of its Article I responsibilities, to consider the proposed amendments to FISA in a prudent and careful manner. This Administration cannot be heard to complain about the unwillingness of Congress to enact legislation that the Administration claims to be so vital for the national security when the Administration at the same time has denied to Congress documents and information that are essential to its legislative responsibilities. Frankly, the Administration’s refusal to provide the requested information belies its position on the importance of the legislation: rather than the Administration giving Congress all the information it needs, the Administration has provided a slow trickle of information to only selected members of Congress, almost assuring that Congress cannot adequately consider its requests.

Glenn Greenwald's take:

Amnesty Day for Bush and lawbreaking telecoms

The Senate today -- led by Jay Rockefeller, enabled by Harry Reid, and with the active support of at least 12 (and probably more) Democrats, in conjunction with an as-always lockstep GOP caucus -- will vote to legalize warrantless spying on the telephone calls and emails of Americans, and will also provide full retroactive amnesty to lawbreaking telecoms, thus forever putting an end to any efforts to investigate and obtain a judicial ruling regarding the Bush administration's years-long illegal spying programs aimed at Americans. The long, hard efforts by AT&T, Verizon and their all-star, bipartisan cast of lobbyists to grease the wheels of the Senate -- led by former Bush 41 Attorney General William Barr and former Clinton Deputy Attorney General Jamie Gorelick -- are about to pay huge dividends, as such noble efforts invariably do with our political establishment.

(Photo: Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) announced that he will run for re-election in the U.S. Senate on Sunday, Jan. 20, 2008, at Shepherd University in Shepherdstown, W.Va.. Rockefeller is pictured with family members, from left, granddaughter Laura Chandler, his wife Sharon and his son Charles. The Associated Press)