Jimmy Carter and Warrantless Surveillance
Whenever Bush's defenders and apologists know they are losing a substantive argument (and especially when they start to see defections from within their ranks) they instinctively lash out at familiar targets, usually prominent liberals and Democratic politicians. Their goal is to rile up the Republican base, to remind them how much they dislike the other side and, by doing so, to distract them from the actual substance of the debate.
On Sunday, Charles Hurt of the conservative Washington Times engaged in a particularly transparent example of this phenomenon. The paper reported breathlessly that "Carter Allowed Surveillance in 1977." The article quotes Jimmy Carter's recent criticism of Bush's secret NSA spying program, and then reports--as if it were some major scoop--that in 1977 Carter authorized the warrantless wiretapping of two Vietnamese spies.
But as the article notes in passing toward the bottom of the page, FISA wasn't enacted until 1978. So what Carter did was in no way analogous to what Bush has done. Moreover, this is a total non-story. Carter's surveillance of these men was later litigated under the caption United States v. Truong Dinh Hung, 629 F.2d 908 (4th Cir. 1980). If you've been following this issue over the last few months, you'll likely recognize that case name. The Truong case has been widely cited in newspapers, blogs posts, and even the government's legal papers and public statements. It's one of the handful of pre-FISA cases that held that the president had the power (absent a statute saying otherwise) to conduct warrantless wiretapping for national security purposes.
But the fact that this was not at all newsworthy (or even new) didn't stop the rightwing blogs from treating it as if it was a damning revelation. Captain Ed at Captain's Quarters immediately cranked out a post entitled "Carter Spied, And Then He Lied." His post ends with this bit of insight:
Yes, we've really been hoisted by our own petards.
And Gateway Pundit sums it up this way:
You can't make this stuff up, folks. It'll be interesting to see whether this talking point (Carter=hypocrite) gains any traction over the next week. It wouldn't surprise me if it did. The ability of Bush's defenders to make even the most ludicrous and easily refuted talking points gain traction never ceases to amaze me.
On Sunday, Charles Hurt of the conservative Washington Times engaged in a particularly transparent example of this phenomenon. The paper reported breathlessly that "Carter Allowed Surveillance in 1977." The article quotes Jimmy Carter's recent criticism of Bush's secret NSA spying program, and then reports--as if it were some major scoop--that in 1977 Carter authorized the warrantless wiretapping of two Vietnamese spies.
But as the article notes in passing toward the bottom of the page, FISA wasn't enacted until 1978. So what Carter did was in no way analogous to what Bush has done. Moreover, this is a total non-story. Carter's surveillance of these men was later litigated under the caption United States v. Truong Dinh Hung, 629 F.2d 908 (4th Cir. 1980). If you've been following this issue over the last few months, you'll likely recognize that case name. The Truong case has been widely cited in newspapers, blogs posts, and even the government's legal papers and public statements. It's one of the handful of pre-FISA cases that held that the president had the power (absent a statute saying otherwise) to conduct warrantless wiretapping for national security purposes.
But the fact that this was not at all newsworthy (or even new) didn't stop the rightwing blogs from treating it as if it was a damning revelation. Captain Ed at Captain's Quarters immediately cranked out a post entitled "Carter Spied, And Then He Lied." His post ends with this bit of insight:
I wonder where all the Democrats who hailed
stare decisis during the Alito and Roberts
confirmation hearings have gone. My guess is
that we won't hear from them about this
precedent.
Yes, we've really been hoisted by our own petards.
And Gateway Pundit sums it up this way:
The Washington Times today reports more
on the hypocrisy of Jimmy Carter, America's
biggest failure as president in and out of office.
Here is the latest on his utterly shameful
attacks on a real American hero,
George W. Bush.
You can't make this stuff up, folks. It'll be interesting to see whether this talking point (Carter=hypocrite) gains any traction over the next week. It wouldn't surprise me if it did. The ability of Bush's defenders to make even the most ludicrous and easily refuted talking points gain traction never ceases to amaze me.
posted by A.L. at 12:41 AM
1 Comments:
The ability of Bush's defenders to make even the most ludicrous and easily refuted talking points gain traction never ceases to amaze me.
Don't overlook the fact that the MSM echo chamber is directed by a band of "lying liars" that are more interested in "catapulting the propaganda" then actually discussing the merits of what chimpy says and does.
When you consider the fact that they control the MSM, anything is possible. Kind of scary huh?
I used to wonder how stupid people were in Germany to let hitler come to power. Know I understand how it happened.
Its not a coincidence that chimpy's grandfather was part of the group that brought hitler to power and financed the war machine -- check it out, bush family fortune did not come from oil.
Post a Comment
Links to this post:
Create a Link
<< Home