Dear Editors and Friends:
It's clear, based on this week's Senate Judiciary Committee hearings with USAG Alberto Gonzales, that this nation is headed toward a major constitutional showdown between Congress and the Bush administration. For corroboration, see US Senator Russell Feingold's 2-8-06 CD essay, "On The President's Warrantless Wiretapping Program":
http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0208-34.htm
For that reason, I highly recommend this outstanding essay for publication on your website and forwarding to your congresspersons, friends, relatives and colleagues.
TITLE: "ON NSA SPYING: A LETTER TO CONGRESS"
BY: 14 Distinguished American Law Professors and Former Government Officials.
DATE: February 9, 2006
SOURCE: The
URL: http://www.nybooks.com/articles/18650
SYNOPSIS: This is a must-read expert opinion by fourteen distinguished American constitutional law scholars and former government officials. First, they explicitly reject the Justice Department's clearly-erroneous 12-20-05 letter to Congress. Second, they explain why Mr. Bush cannot legally authorize the NSA's warrantless domestic spying program: (a) it's unconstitutional under the Fourth Amendment; and (b) it's a clear-cut criminal violation of the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Finally, their letter briefly states that torture during interrogation remains illegal under federal statutes and duly-ratified treaties, despite Mr. Bush's protestations to the contrary.
By the way, you can see how brazenly the Bush administration has been flouting the rule of law by reading UWM History Professor Alfred McCoy's excellent
2-8-06 CD/TD essay, "Why The McCain Torture Ban Won't Work: The Bush Legacy Of Legalized Torture":
http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0208-28.htm
IMPACT: If our Congresspersons and the public read this open letter, they will finally understand that Mr. Bush's warrantless domestic wiretapping program is, in actual point of law, indisputably ILLEGAL.
THE BOTTOM LINE: This is a grave criminal offense for which impeachment proceedings are the proper remedy, because no one is above the law - not even the president.
With Best Regards in Progressive Solidarity,
Evan Augustine Peterson III, J.D.
Executive Director
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