Reply #6: Congress needs to get this done....

[Polemicist]

And revise the FISA laws appropriately and responsibly, mindful of our civil rights, but also mindful of utilizing all the tools available to monitor threats and fight terrorism. Asking Congress to revise FISA is what should have been done originally by the radical Bush Administration, back in late 2001 and early 2002. But Bush/Cheney always tries first to push the envelope of Executive power with the maximum secrecy. So they left Congress out of the loop and did whatever they wanted.

And now, after what appears to be a lot of back stage maneuvering and legal questioning, we are finally going to have Congress, the proper legal authority on this question, address these privacy and technological concerns. Let's not be hasty and accuse Democrats of capitulating. They fought for 6 years to force Bush to submit his spying to Congress for approval. It's a victory just to be at this point.

But we can't accept Gonzales or any other Attorney General as the solitary point person for this program. It must remain with a FISA court and a Federal Judge. The oversight must be outside the Executive branch. Democrats can't cave on that point, no matter the pressure.