Washblog

WASHINGTON, DC - On Tuesday, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) issued the following statement following Senator Harry Reid's announcement that the Senate would delay further debate on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) bill until January.  Earlier on Monday, Senator Cantwell voted against cloture because she had significant concerns that the original bill did not adequately protect the Constitutional rights of American citizens.  

Cantwell's statement:

"The FISA proposal placed before the Senate did not strike an appropriate balance between respecting Americans' constitutional rights while giving the government the tools it needs to spy on suspected terrorists and keep us safe.

"Yesterday's debate made it clear that debating something as important as intelligence surveillance should not be done on the fly.  

"Of particular concern to me was that while we must do all we can to protect innocent Americans we cannot at the same time provide blanket immunity for telecommunications companies, when we don't know precisely what those companies did.  It's unacceptable and the administration and companies must be held accountable. Any immunity decisions should be made on a case-by-case basis, examining whether the companies followed the law and acted in good faith.

"Congress must maintain vigilant oversight of the checks and balances, but especially when this administration's over-reaching use of executive power has not only been called into question, but has been reversed by the courts.

"From warrantless wiretapping, to the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo Bay, to the firing of eight U.S. Attorneys - there are too many instances where this administration has not provided answers and has not made upholding the rule of law a priority.

"We have an obligation to give the government all the tools it needs to spy on suspected terrorists, but we also have a responsibility to respect our citizens' constitutional rights and basic freedoms. Congress must craft a proposal that does both."

Incredibly, Democrats are buying his line about "getting things done" and not "scoring political points". And I know that Dems like Patty Murray THINK that if they "get things done" and are "practical" then they will get power and then they can do everything good and nice and I'll be happy with them.

No.

I.

Won't.

Patty Murray need not run again, as far as I'm concerned. She's done. Washington state does not need her. She should retire and let a Democrat with some courage and strategic sense take the job. I'm not surprised she is behaving this way, of course, and neither should any Democrat be surprised.

What's surprising is that there are Democrats who actually continue to stand up and fight despite the mocking from the Republicans and the self-important quislings in their own ranks.

I won't vote for her. It's a question of finding new blood and people with good sense. The ability and *desire* to stand up for what you believe in is a value in and of itself. It's an essential one and Murray lacks it.

And frankly I'm not impressed with Cantwell either, although she said the right things on this vote.