Bradley Whitford and Courage Campaign: No telecom immunity!

A call to action from Bradley Whitford ("Josh Lyman" on The West Wing") and the Courage Campaign about the upcoming FISA vote in the Senate on retroactive immunity for telecom companies. Call your Senator today and ask them to support Senator Dodd's filibuster against retroactive immunity for telecom companies who wiretapped Americans without a warrant. Bradley Whitford will be calling his Senator -- Senator Feinstein. Learn more at www.couragecampaign.org/filibuster

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• news
• Bradley
• Whitford
• FISA
• telecom
• immunity
• Dianne
• Feinstein
• Senate
• Courage
• Campaign

[bbruhwiler8]

I can never get through to Sen Feinstein's Washington office. She set her phone up that way. But you can reach her LA office at 310-914-7300

[bndemattei]

I just tried to leave a message for Feinstein's SF office and the mailbox is full! That's good news. I will call back.

[deeter131]

If the government orders..you do it?..lol..wow.. I must have missed the news about America changing to a dictatorship....hmmmm

[ptw1980]

Man, Bradley Whitford is an idiot.

[jrigeli]

I never said it was under FISA. It's part of US Code Title 18. It is just one of many laws the Telecoms cited as their reason for conducting the wiretaps.

My main point is why blame the Telecoms for the Governments actions. Both the Executive Branch and top leaders(Democrats and Repuplicans) were briefed and knew this was going on.

I believe the calls in question originated from outside the United States.

[darkstarownzu]

However, in order to gain the floor, the Senator exercising rule XIX(a) (The 'Filibuster') would have to yield the floor.

[KostaA1982]

A filibuster is a procedural tactic. Under Senate rule XIX 1(a.) Usually, the Senator addresses the Senate President and requests the floor. The Senate President then grants the Senator who addresses him/her first, the floor. No Senator can interrupt the speaking Senator without his/her consent. In a filibuster, a Senator holds the floor and talks about anything. It's an effort to wear out supporters of a controversial bill and make them retract the bill from the floor.

[KostaA1982]

Filibustering Senators can talk about anything ranging from the bill itself to reading recipes out of a cook book (which has been done before._

[KostaA1982]

There is no such number under the FISA Act. The FISA law is as follows:

50 US 35 1801-1871.

Under 1801 (A)(1)(2)(3), the President (through the Attorney General) can conduct a warrant-less wire tap ONLY on foreign powers for the purpose of foreign intelligence gathering. Even then the wire tap is only good for one (1) year.

[KostaA1982]

In order for it to be treason it would have to be a crime, or the planning of a crime, against the Government of the United States. A company refusing to wiretap citizens would not constitute treason. The company had an obligation to request that the government produce a court order. Only when these things are done legally can we ensure that justice would be served. Legally, all evidence complied by the US Government via warrant-less wire tapes would be inadmissible in court.

[darkstarownzu]

Let's be clear what we're discussing here. There are two issues, not one.

First, there's the Government ordering telcos to conduct wire taps. Secondly, there's the telcos conducting the wire taps.

If the telco failed to conduct the wire tap, however illegal it may have been, there is a strong legal argument that the CEOs could have been charged with treason.

No where in this debate have Democrats offered legal relief for disobeying a government order.

If the Government orders - you do it!

[jrigeli]

Because it's going to cost the Telecoms the time and expense to defend themselves?

You know what else bothers me. Before all this became public, the leadership of the Congress, both Democrats and Republicans were briefed and knew this was going.

Essentialy, the government is making the Telecoms the fall guy.