Support For Censure (Slowly) Grows, As White House Continues To Blur The Debate

Pew has the President's approval rating at 33% in the latest poll.

Meanwhile, according to Roll Call- "Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) has become the first co-sponsor to Sen. Russ Feingold’s (D-Wis.) controversial resolution to censure President Bush for authorizing an allegedly illegal domestic surveillance program."

This is encouraging news... support is building.

The article further states-

In a brief interview, Harkin said, “I think it makes sense. … Quite frankly, I think we ought to have a full-fledged debate on this.” …

Feingold said that even though support for his resolution is low so far, he believes he is already meeting his goal of reopening the debate on the matter.

“I’ve achieved what I wanted to achieve,” Feingold said, adding that he still hopes his resolution will pass. “I’m very pleased with what has happened.”

As promised, I again called my two Senators this afternoon (and will continue to do so until they go on record). I first called the offices of Senator Clinton and asked if the Senator had made a decision. In a total cop-out, the staffer told me this since the resolution has moved from the full Senate to the Judiciary Committee, she was holding back from making a statement for now. Of course, Senator Clinton is the person who, last month, said not to give in to the White House's politics of fear. She encouraged her fellow Democrats to speak out against this, stating "Since when has it been part of American patriotism to keep our mouths shut?". Looks she won't even take her own advice.

Next, I called the office of Senator Schumer, remembering that he is actually on the Judiciary Committee and therefore can't blow me off the way the Clinton staffer did. I asked the Schumer staffer whether the Senator, as a member of the Committee, supports the resolution, and I was simply told Schumer has not made any decisions yet. I look forward to the same answer tomorrow.

Some Republicans, while not openly supporting the resolution, encourage the debate-

Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island, offered some praise for Feingold, saying the resolution would be “positive” if it fueled debate over the legality of some policies in the war on terrorism.

Meanwhile, that lih-buh-ral media still can't get their facts straight. This morning, they reported that "not a single Democrat has embraced [censure]" when as of last night, Senators Boxer, Harkin, Kerry, and Menendez have expressed some support. Elsewhere, the Washington Post had reported that "a majority of Americans side with the president on wiretapping tactics". It's the use of the word 'tactics' there that rings false... Polls show that while the majority do (naturally) support monitoring terrorists' phone calls, they also insist the government must get the required court orders to do so. Numerous other polls further show the majority disagree with the President's legal assertions and his actions in regards to warrantless wiretapping.

As I stated last night, the White House knows that Sen. Feingold's resolution is right on its merits and they fear this debate. That is the real reason their lackey Sen. Frist tried to force an early vote- they want this issue out of the way as quickly as possible. While claiming this debate will work to their favor, the White House has been relentless in trying to keep it out of the spotlight- sending Vice President Cheney to strongarm the Intelligence Committee into voting against an investigation, beginning a movement to jail reporters and whistleblowers, and insisting that anyone who disagrees with the White House has sided with terrorists. These are not the actions of innocent men. They are the actions of a desperate, pseudo-fascist government which has declared itself above the law and cannot stand that some wish to question that.

Anybody who could possibly be against the censure of President Bush doesn't understand what it is and has been so warped by the Bizarro America in which we live that they have forgotten how a real democracy works. Censure is simply a way of stating to the President that he has behaved wrongly and a way of reasserting the rule of law. If we can't even do that much, then we no longer deserve the right to call this country a democracy. Perhaps we'll just say we are a democracy... but with an asterick mark after it (democracy*- except during state of perpetual war in which 'Commander In Chief' becomes a law onto himself and expects the unquestioned support of his subjects).

Thanks to Russ Feingold, Tom Harkin, and the others who are standing up.

[PS- Watch this clip from the last 'Boston Legal'. If only our press had the balls of fictional TV characters.]