Why Do You Need Immunity, If You Haven't Broken the Law? (Uygur | HuffPost)

[struggle4progress]

Posted October 13, 2007 | 04:35 PM (EST)

... why would the telecom companies need immunity if they didn't break the law? ...

Isn't this an obvious admission that the administration did ask the large telecommunication companies to break the law for them? And if they did, why on God's green earth should we give them immunity without investigating what they did? In fact, shouldn't somebody be looking into doing the opposite - enforcing the law?

Has enforcing US law become so quaint and obsolete that when someone pretty much admits they broke the law and asks in essence for a preemptive pardon, no one looks into it? Do we have a Justice Department anymore? Isn't it comical that these guys ran on the "rule of law" and restoring dignity back into the White House?

... in yet another ironic twist, it turns out the only person prosecuted so far is the one man who did not go along with the illegal wiretapping program, Joe Nacchio, the CEO of Qwest ...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cenk-uygur/why-do-you-need-immunity_b_68343.html

[Demeter]

1. Through the Looking Glass Into Bush World!

[MasonJar]

2. Because as everyone knows these companies have broken the law.

I got rid of Cingular when AT&T bought them, even though it cost me a lot of money. Now they have bought BellSouth and I have not yet figured out how to have a phone without them. I am open to suggestions from anyone.

[bonito]

3. K&R

[CGowen]

4. And it all happened before 911

DENVER, Oct. 13 A telecommunications executive convicted of insider trading says his company lost a big federal contract in reprisal for refusing to aid illegal monitoring.

Joseph Nacchio, former chief executive of Qwest Communications International, made the charge in his appeal, The Washington Post reported. A court in Denver unsealed the documents.

Nacchio claims he thought Qwest had a bright future when he sold a large block of stock in early 2001. The stock price skidded just after his sale.

The National Security Agency attempted to recruit Qwest to a program of warrantless monitoring of communications months before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Nacchio's lawyer said in court documents. Nacchio said he turned the NSA down after company lawyers said the program was illegal.

Nacchio's lawyer, Herbert Stern, said the government in reprisal withdrew a $100 million contract, causing many of Qwest's problems.


http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/123562.html

[midnight]

5. That is a very good question..... It goes along the same reasoning

that some people believe we should not worry about wiretapping. We aren't doing anything wrong, we have nothing to hide thought.