A Majority Of Americans Support Censure

With the clueless media and political hacks trying to wish away the topic of censure, Sen. Feingold and his supporters are staying strong... and gaining support. At the least, the Senator has succeeded in his goal of starting a national debate on the President's actions, which the White House has mostly managed to avoid thus far.

Also, despite sloppy reporting (ie. stating that Feingold stands alone or wondering why couldn't he wait for an Intelligence Committee investigation that is never happening), the American people understand the issue well enough. Perhaps that's because polls have shown since the story broke that the majority of Americans do not support warrantless wiretapping. The first polls on the censure issue show similar findings.

A American Research Group poll just released states-

Do you favor or oppose the United States Senate passing a resolution censuring President George W. Bush for authorizing wiretaps of Americans within the United States without obtaining court orders?

All Adults - 3/15/06

Favor - 46%
Oppose - 44%
Undecided - 10%

The media (not to mention, ohhh, the Democratic party and some sympathetic Republicans) should take a note: The majority of Americans support this resolution. It's a close vote, for sure, but the majority support speaks volumes considering how the press is burying it. The inside-the-beltway circle jerk gang may want to convince themselves otherwise, but the American people would like to see accountability and (gosh!) don't believe themselves unpatriotic for supporting that.

Traitors!

Speaking of Senator Harkin, he has released a statement on cosponsoring the resolution-

We have a President who likes to break things. He has broken the federal budget, running up $3 trillion in new debt. He has broken the Geneva Conventions, giving the green light to torture. He has repeatedly broken promises – and broken faith – with the American people. And now, worst of all, he has broken the law.

In brazen violation of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), he ordered the National Security Agency to conduct warrantless wiretaps of American citizens. And, despite getting caught red-handed, he refuses to stop.

Let's be clear: No American – and that must include the President – is above the law. And if we fail to hold Bush to account, then he will be confirmed in his conviction that he can pick and choose among the laws he wants to obey. This is profoundly dangerous to our democracy.

So it is time for Congress to stand up and say enough! That's why, this week, Senator Russ Feingold proposed a resolution to censure George W. Bush for breaking the FISA law. And that's why I fully support this resolution of censure.

Nothing is more important to me than the security of our country. Of course, we need to be listening to the terrorists' conversations. And sometimes there is not time to get a warrant. That's why the FISA law allows the President, when necessary, to wiretap first, and obtain a warrant afterward. But that's not acceptable to this above-the-law President. He rejects the idea that he should have to obtain a warrant before or after wiretapping.

We have an out-of-control President whose arrogant and, now, illegal behavior is running our country into the ditch. It's time to rein him in. And a fine place to start is by passing this resolution of censure. I hope that Senator Feingold's measure will be brought to the floor. And when it is, I will proudly vote yes.

And watch again Sen. Feingold's speech from Monday for his words on his resolution.

This debate will continue and that's a good thing. That's democracy in action. We'll see the familiar defenses (Rush, Fox News, et al) crying treason and opportunism, but by now the public has mostly tuned all that noise out. This may finally be an issue that is debated on its merits, not its supposed politics. Although who knows how things will get blurred in the weeks to come. The first poll is encouraging in that regard, because it says that people get that. Imagine how many more will get it when more Senators stand up like Russ and Tom and make their voices heard.

Wishful thinking? Perhaps. But it's clear so far that the public is more open to this than politicians in DC.

[PS- Anonymous Liberal compares this scandal to the Whitewater one they tried to bring Clinton down with-
A Tale of Two Scandals]

[PPS- Still no decision from Sens. Clinton or Schumer. Talk to you tomorrow, guys!]