Our representatives have turned on us. It is very clear, with the passage of HR6304 in the House of Representatives, that it will be up to us to make a difference in this country.

It appears we have traitors in our midst! Sounds dramatic? Well, on Friday, June 20, 2008, the House of Representatives delivered a sharp blow to United States citizens. By passing HR 6304, one of the most egregious, devastating pieces of legislation, House Republicans and Democrats have circumvented the Constitution, making it legal to spy on American citizens. At least one thing is sure, we know who our enemies are, and it is not Iraq, or Iran for that matter!

With support of both major political parties, HR 6304 has now been passed to the Senate for consideration. There is speculation that the Senate may consider a vote before the end of the month, that is, within the week. TeleComm’s, AT&T and Verizon to be more specific, have gained retroactive immunity for their part in voluntarily providing private communications information to the NSA without warrants, which was unconstitutional and illegal, until June 20, 2008. As US citizens, we should all be livid.

The vote approving this bill is a shocking 293 Yeas and 129 Nays. Add to this that both our current Presidential Candidates, Barack Obama and John McCain, and the current Speaker of the House Rep. Nancy Pelosi support this insidious bill, I’d say we, as true Patriotic Americans, have our work cut out for us!

A video on YouTube called “HR 6304-A Bill To Abolish the 4th Amendment,” www.youtube.com:80/watch?v=MIJdmePn4lY, has stirred the ire of many a Patriotic American! Showing us a compilation of statements, both for and against, from the House floor before the vote, this collection of astounding proclamations are, to say the very least, extremely revealing.

“…Frankly, Madam Speaker, it is very difficult to put lipstick on a pig” declares Rep. Shelia Jackson Lee. She goes on to explain that passage of this bill will allow the government to surveil someone for seven days, and if the surveillance application is denied, you can continue to be surveilled for sixty more days during the appeal process. Does this sound like a piece of legislation you would want your Congressperson to pursue or support?

“This is actually a great day…we…have been waiting for this since 12:01am on February 6th, when the Protect America Act expired.” Rep Dan Lungren goes on to say that since then, we have actually been “unnecessarily vulnerable to those who would do us harm in this era of worldwide terrorism.” Really Rep. Lungren? It appears you and your House buddies can do that to US citizens all by yourselves!

Rep. Mike Rogers, however, thinks by passing this bill, the Fourth Amendment is “alive and well…” and “anything to the contrary is fear mongering.” Really? What part, please do tell, Rep Rogers, is fear mongering? Could it be the part that tramples on our very liberties?

While Rep. Barbara Lee made it clear that this legislation “undermines the ability of federal courts to review the legality of domestic surveillance,” Rep. Zoe Lofgren had another observation…that the provisions in HR6304 “turn the Judiciary into the Administration’s rubber stamp.” My question would be does it leave us with a Judicial Branch at all? Rep Lofgren goes on to say that by passing this bill we turn the “process of Judicial review into a joke” denigrating the Judicial Branch, which is an equal and independent branch of government.

Perhaps Rep. Jay Inslee says it best, “This bill says if the telecommunication companies violated America’s privacy, willfully, knowingly, knowing it was illegal, we are giving them immunity. Where is the excuse for that?” This piece of legislation seems to set another dangerous precedent; does every company that knowingly commits a crime get retroactive immunity? And what about We-the-people? Do we get retroactive immunity from our wrongdoing?

This law virtually neuters the legislative and judicial branches of our government, giving almost dictatorial powers to the Executive branch, chipping away even more of our longstanding checks and balances. When will it stop? When will the people understand that much more of this will leave us with NO rights at all? I must ask the question, for whom is this administration, and Congress, setting up a dictatorship?

As if HR 6304 was not bad enough, it is actually just the last bill in a long line of abusive governmental rhetoric aimed at forcing US Citizens into giving up something that cannot be given, our unalienable rights! The newly released film, Washington, You’re Fired, provides a summary of the past seven years of heinous legislation handed to an out-of-control Administration by a Congress that cannot abide by its Oath of Office. This documentary is creating a revolution in the legislation information arena by proving to be an excellent tool for a quick non-partisan political education.

November is coming and not only do we elect a new President, but ALL the seats in the House of Representatives are up for re-election. All of them. It is time to send a clear message to our Representatives that we will no longer take their rabid abuse. It is time, as Senator Obama has stated, for change. I am quite sure, however, that the change of which I am thinking has NOTHING to do with his idea. We need to take a good, hard look of the members of the House of Representatives. Those found lacking should be shown the door, post haste! We have no more time to wait for someone to take a stand there. While we wait, the current administration is getting away with murder, literally and figuratively. It is time for this travesty to stop!

Endnotes:

House Vote and Text of HR 6304
www.govtrack.us/congress/vote.xpd?vote=h2008-437

House Passes Spy Bill; Senate Expected to Follow
www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/20/AR2008062000986...

H.R. 6304, THE FISA AMENDMENTS ACT OF 2008 (6/19/2008)
www.aclu.org/safefree/nsaspying/35731res20080619.html (Summary)

HR 6304 - A Bill to Abolish the 4th Amendment
www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIJdmePn4lY

Take Back Washington
www.takebackwashington.com

Washington, You’re Fired
www.washingtonyourefired.com