What Is a Living Wage?
Starmail - 17. Jan, 12:54
Vote USA 2004
17
Jan
2006
King Day Holds True to Its Purpose
Starmail - 17. Jan, 12:51
Führender Republikaner erörtert Bush's Amtsenthebung als Option
Starmail - 17. Jan, 12:50
Tell the White House to Stop Illegal Spying
Starmail - 17. Jan, 12:49
Gore: Bush 'Repeatedly and Persistently' Broke the Law
Starmail - 17. Jan, 12:27
Gore calls for independent investigation into Bush's 'secret assumption of powers'
Starmail - 17. Jan, 11:15
Tell Them FILIBUSTER Alito Or Get Out Of OUR Congress
How would you like to be the next senator elected from . . .
NEW ACTION PAGE TO FILIBUSTER ALITO: http://www.nocrony.com
CALL YOUR SENATORS RIGHT NOW at 888-818-6641, 888-355-3588 or 800-426-8073. If you can't leave a message try back again first thing in the morning, and submit the action page above in the meantime.
When they surrendered on the original filibuster confrontation without a fight they told us they were "saving our ammunition." Strike one.
When they waved Roberts through without demanding access to any of his records for the last 20 years they told us they were "keeping our powder dry." Strike two.
Don't DARE try to tell us that now rubberstamping the most radical jurist on the appellate bench is yet more "picking our battles."
A number of senators in the last couple days have made statements to the effect they did not hear anything at Alito's confirmation hearing that would make them vote against him. Of course not, because he did not actually say ANYTHING!
Alito is on the record stating that he believes in a dictatorial model of the president and that a woman's private decisions are up for grabs. He lied about his position on the former and categorically refused to repudiate the latter. Robert Bork himself stated the other day he believes conclusively that Alito still holds that view. THAT is the evidence to filibuster Alito, not what he might have evaded saying at his hearing.
This is our litmus test. If our senators will not protect us from this constitutional outrage, we call for each and every one to be defeated in their next election. We call for candidates to arise in their own primaries if necessary to punish them for their cowardice and their complicity. If putting their own job on the line is not a circumstance "extraordinary" enough for them we don't know what is.
Alito has been called a "walking constitutional amendment." Let our senators clearly understand that for them he represents a walking pink slip. And don't think because you are not up for re-election in 2006 that we will not remember. If you blow this one you will come to find out what a "done deal" really is. Nothing you can do in the future will redeem you. We the people can do better.
CALLING ALL POTENTIAL PRIMARY AND GENERAL ELECTION CANDIDATES
If you live in a state where your senator has expressed support or indifference on the Alito nomination we need you to immediately contact us about mounting a primary or general election challenge with yourself or someone else you know as the candidate. Be ye not concerned where you will get the money to run. We will provide you with the tools to run a campaign with no money and win. All you need is the courage to want to represent your fellow constitutents and do what they want their senators to do . . . for a change.
Did you catch Alito's snaky answer when asked if he thought Roe v. Wade was well settled? He said it depended on what you meant by "well settled." And they ridiculed Clinton for quibbling about the meaning of the word "is". When he says stare decisis is not an inexorable command, what he really means is Katie bar the door to the Supreme Court.
He doesn't always rule against the "little guy" he said at this hearing. And he gave as his primary example the machine gun case. Oh swell . . . if you are a little guy with a machine gun you can get a fair shake in judge Alito's courtroom.
On issue after issue he refused to comment, on the grounds that it might come before him. MIGHT come before him? Of course these issues will come before him. That's the whole plan, to systematically revisit every one of these decisions and roll them back one century at a time. The members of the Federalist society have been plotting this judicial coup since their mentor Bork was rejected for admitting his extremism. Since then they have been packing the courts with true believers who refuse to disclose their agendas, accelerated by the Bush neocon cabal. And Alito is the last piece of the puzzle they need to fall into place, WITHOUT WHICH THEY CANNOT PROCEED.
That is why it is so critical. That is why you must speak out again now. That is why you must submit this action page now.
http://www.nocrony.com
That is why you must ignore even now the voices on our own side who have been conned into parroting the right wing line that this is a foregone conclusion. Our senators did not have the burden of proof to stop Alito. It was his burden of proof to earn the position with straight forward and honest answers to the American people about what he stood for. The Federalist society knows EXACTLY what he stands for. They dropkicked Miers because they weren't 100% sure about her. It is the American people they are so desperately trying to keep in the dark.
This one is a ringer. You don't run with the wolf pack for so many decades without being a wolf. But they could not nominate a wolf without outfitting him with the sheep's clothing of "I'd have to carefully examine the facts of the case." They played up a weepy wife to trivialize the monumental danger this man represents as the fifth and deciding vote to overturn absolutely everything we ever cared about. And his supporters admit it even if he will not. Yeah, sure they say, that's what they want, to roll to clock back to the mid-thirties for starters and work backwards from there.
One of the most pathetic reasons we've ever heard for inaction is that they'll just nominate somebody as bad if Alito is rejected. What kind of defeatism is that? C'mon folks, snap out of it. No, not only are we going to turn thumbs down on Alito, but the next one, and the next one, until we get a true moderate at the very worse. That is what the American people deserve, if only you will demand it by calling your senators right now at one of the toll free numbers. There are three we know of, 888-818-6641, 888-355-3588, 800-426-8073.
Tell them if they do not filibuster Alito their own jobs are in jeopardy. Those who will not exercise the power they have will have whatever power they do have taken away from them. The OTHER side will do that if we do not do it first. Hold a press conference and declare your opposition and willingness to run in the primary of any state where such a senator dwells. You won't have to worry about raising money. You will be drafted so fast it will make your head spin.
Please take action NOW, so we can win all victories that are supposed to be ours, and forward this message to everyone else you know.
Powered by The People's Email Network Copyright 2005, Patent pending, All rights reserved
NEW ACTION PAGE TO FILIBUSTER ALITO: http://www.nocrony.com
CALL YOUR SENATORS RIGHT NOW at 888-818-6641, 888-355-3588 or 800-426-8073. If you can't leave a message try back again first thing in the morning, and submit the action page above in the meantime.
When they surrendered on the original filibuster confrontation without a fight they told us they were "saving our ammunition." Strike one.
When they waved Roberts through without demanding access to any of his records for the last 20 years they told us they were "keeping our powder dry." Strike two.
Don't DARE try to tell us that now rubberstamping the most radical jurist on the appellate bench is yet more "picking our battles."
A number of senators in the last couple days have made statements to the effect they did not hear anything at Alito's confirmation hearing that would make them vote against him. Of course not, because he did not actually say ANYTHING!
Alito is on the record stating that he believes in a dictatorial model of the president and that a woman's private decisions are up for grabs. He lied about his position on the former and categorically refused to repudiate the latter. Robert Bork himself stated the other day he believes conclusively that Alito still holds that view. THAT is the evidence to filibuster Alito, not what he might have evaded saying at his hearing.
This is our litmus test. If our senators will not protect us from this constitutional outrage, we call for each and every one to be defeated in their next election. We call for candidates to arise in their own primaries if necessary to punish them for their cowardice and their complicity. If putting their own job on the line is not a circumstance "extraordinary" enough for them we don't know what is.
Alito has been called a "walking constitutional amendment." Let our senators clearly understand that for them he represents a walking pink slip. And don't think because you are not up for re-election in 2006 that we will not remember. If you blow this one you will come to find out what a "done deal" really is. Nothing you can do in the future will redeem you. We the people can do better.
CALLING ALL POTENTIAL PRIMARY AND GENERAL ELECTION CANDIDATES
If you live in a state where your senator has expressed support or indifference on the Alito nomination we need you to immediately contact us about mounting a primary or general election challenge with yourself or someone else you know as the candidate. Be ye not concerned where you will get the money to run. We will provide you with the tools to run a campaign with no money and win. All you need is the courage to want to represent your fellow constitutents and do what they want their senators to do . . . for a change.
Did you catch Alito's snaky answer when asked if he thought Roe v. Wade was well settled? He said it depended on what you meant by "well settled." And they ridiculed Clinton for quibbling about the meaning of the word "is". When he says stare decisis is not an inexorable command, what he really means is Katie bar the door to the Supreme Court.
He doesn't always rule against the "little guy" he said at this hearing. And he gave as his primary example the machine gun case. Oh swell . . . if you are a little guy with a machine gun you can get a fair shake in judge Alito's courtroom.
On issue after issue he refused to comment, on the grounds that it might come before him. MIGHT come before him? Of course these issues will come before him. That's the whole plan, to systematically revisit every one of these decisions and roll them back one century at a time. The members of the Federalist society have been plotting this judicial coup since their mentor Bork was rejected for admitting his extremism. Since then they have been packing the courts with true believers who refuse to disclose their agendas, accelerated by the Bush neocon cabal. And Alito is the last piece of the puzzle they need to fall into place, WITHOUT WHICH THEY CANNOT PROCEED.
That is why it is so critical. That is why you must speak out again now. That is why you must submit this action page now.
http://www.nocrony.com
That is why you must ignore even now the voices on our own side who have been conned into parroting the right wing line that this is a foregone conclusion. Our senators did not have the burden of proof to stop Alito. It was his burden of proof to earn the position with straight forward and honest answers to the American people about what he stood for. The Federalist society knows EXACTLY what he stands for. They dropkicked Miers because they weren't 100% sure about her. It is the American people they are so desperately trying to keep in the dark.
This one is a ringer. You don't run with the wolf pack for so many decades without being a wolf. But they could not nominate a wolf without outfitting him with the sheep's clothing of "I'd have to carefully examine the facts of the case." They played up a weepy wife to trivialize the monumental danger this man represents as the fifth and deciding vote to overturn absolutely everything we ever cared about. And his supporters admit it even if he will not. Yeah, sure they say, that's what they want, to roll to clock back to the mid-thirties for starters and work backwards from there.
One of the most pathetic reasons we've ever heard for inaction is that they'll just nominate somebody as bad if Alito is rejected. What kind of defeatism is that? C'mon folks, snap out of it. No, not only are we going to turn thumbs down on Alito, but the next one, and the next one, until we get a true moderate at the very worse. That is what the American people deserve, if only you will demand it by calling your senators right now at one of the toll free numbers. There are three we know of, 888-818-6641, 888-355-3588, 800-426-8073.
Tell them if they do not filibuster Alito their own jobs are in jeopardy. Those who will not exercise the power they have will have whatever power they do have taken away from them. The OTHER side will do that if we do not do it first. Hold a press conference and declare your opposition and willingness to run in the primary of any state where such a senator dwells. You won't have to worry about raising money. You will be drafted so fast it will make your head spin.
Please take action NOW, so we can win all victories that are supposed to be ours, and forward this message to everyone else you know.
Powered by The People's Email Network Copyright 2005, Patent pending, All rights reserved
Starmail - 17. Jan, 11:12
“Duke” of Deception: the overlooked security implications of the Cunningham scandal
http://www.prospect.org/web/page.ww?section=root&name=ViewWeb&articleId=10816
Informant: Lew Rockwell
Informant: Lew Rockwell
Starmail - 17. Jan, 10:56
New Zogby Poll: 52% of Americans Support Impeaching Bush for Wiretapping
By a margin of 52% to 43%, Americans want Congress to consider impeaching President Bush if he wiretapped American citizens without a judge's approval, according to a new poll commissioned by After Downing Street and conducted by Zogby International.
"The American people are not buying Bush's outrageous claim that he has the power to wiretap American citizens without a warrant. Americans believe terrorism can be fought without turning our own government into Big Brother," said AfterDowningStreet.org co-founder Bob Fertik.
Read the results and print out a one-page flyer summarizing the various polls that have been done on impeachment:
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/polling
Tell the media to cover this news:
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/1084
____________
Bush on Trial in New York This Weekend
Is the Bush Administration guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity? Even raising this question has been ruled out of order and out of bounds in the U.S. today, but on January 20-22 in NYC an unprecedented citizens Commission of Inquiry will ask -- and seek to answer -- exactly these questions and alter the terms of debate about this government.
Internationally-known expert witnesses and whistleblowers from the US and UK will testify in five areas: war, torture, global environment, global health (AIDs and reproductive rights), and the administration’s response to Katrina. Witnesses and judges include former commander of Abu Ghraib prison Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski, former British ambassador Craig Murray (quoted today by Al Gore) who exposed US use of torture in Uzbekistan, Scott Ritter, Dennis Brutus, ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern, Dahr Jamail, Guantanamo prisoners’ lawyer Michael Ratner, David Swanson, Katrina survivors, former US diplomat and retired US Army Reserve Colonel Ann Wright.
Indictments from the Commission’s first session were delivered to the White House on January 10 by a delegation including Ray McGovern who told the press: "Back in the '30s the Germans hunkered down and hoped that Hitler and the Nazis would just go away. They didn't do the kind of thing [we are doing here]. Unlawful wiretapping and spying, Iraq and the torture and detentions, and on and on. This can't go down unopposed." Ann Wright on the Tribunal: "These are indictments that will ultimately bring down this administration."
The Commission is open to the public. Friday/Saturday sessions are at Riverside Church, Sunday session at Columbia Law School. More info: http://www.bushcommission.org
From Dennis Kucinich's political campaigns and calls for peace to the top 40 organic products companies; from Eve Ensler's calls for women in power to what's responsible about socially responsible investing. As you read Ode you'll realize it's an international news magazine unlike any other.
Ode reports on stories about progressive politics, sustainability, natural health, leading-edge science and spirituality, and much more. Smile, laugh and cry with Ode. Find out more about Ode's special offer here, just in time for the holidays.
Ode has been making waves. Anita Roddick, founder of the Body Shop, calls Ode "essential reading," and Benjamin Zander, conductor of the Boston Philharmonic calls Ode a "way of life." Now, for a limited time, you can get an introductory subscription to Ode of six issues for just $10. Don't miss out on getting this big, colorful magazine that will enhance your perspective for about the cost of a single movie ticket. Find out more.
_________
Demand that Republican Senate Leadership Let the Truth Out
President Bush has said over 100 times that Congress was shown the same pre-war intelligence he was. Senator Kennedy submitted an amendment in December to an intelligence bill asking the White House to turn over to the Senate Intelligence Committee the President's daily briefings, beginning with the last term of the Clinton Administration and ending on first day of the war in Iraq in 2003. In response, an anonymous Republican Senator blocked the bill and is still blocking it.
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/6818
Email and phone these three members of the Republican leadership and demand that they have the hold taken off the bill:
SENATOR BILL FRIST, Phone: 202-224-3344, Fax: 202-228-1264
http://tinyurl.com/2dnol
SENATOR MITCH MCCONNELL, Phone: 202-224-2541, Fax: 202-224-2499 http://mcconnell.senate.gov/contact_form.cfm
SENATOR PAT ROBERTS, Phone: 202-224-4774, Fax: 202-224-3514
http://roberts.senate.gov/e-mail_pat.html
____________
Stop Alito! (An alert from Progressive Democrats of America)
Judge Alito's nomination to the Supreme Court poses a grave threat to the nation. President Bush's nomination of Third Circuit Judge Samuel Alito to the U.S. Supreme Court poses grave threats to numerous progressive values. Unlike recently appointed Chief Justice John Roberts, Judge Alito has an extensive paper trail documenting the right-wing political agenda that he has actively advanced, not only as a high-ranking official in the Reagan Administration, but also as a judge. E-MAIL YOUR SENATORS:
http://tinyurl.com/8qfag
____________
"I could never again raise my voice against the violence of the oppressed in the ghettos without having first spoken clearly to the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today -- my own government." -- Martin Luther King, Jr.
____________
FORWARD THIS INFORMATION
http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=impeach
http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=Downing+Street+Memo
"The American people are not buying Bush's outrageous claim that he has the power to wiretap American citizens without a warrant. Americans believe terrorism can be fought without turning our own government into Big Brother," said AfterDowningStreet.org co-founder Bob Fertik.
Read the results and print out a one-page flyer summarizing the various polls that have been done on impeachment:
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/polling
Tell the media to cover this news:
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/1084
____________
Bush on Trial in New York This Weekend
Is the Bush Administration guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity? Even raising this question has been ruled out of order and out of bounds in the U.S. today, but on January 20-22 in NYC an unprecedented citizens Commission of Inquiry will ask -- and seek to answer -- exactly these questions and alter the terms of debate about this government.
Internationally-known expert witnesses and whistleblowers from the US and UK will testify in five areas: war, torture, global environment, global health (AIDs and reproductive rights), and the administration’s response to Katrina. Witnesses and judges include former commander of Abu Ghraib prison Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski, former British ambassador Craig Murray (quoted today by Al Gore) who exposed US use of torture in Uzbekistan, Scott Ritter, Dennis Brutus, ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern, Dahr Jamail, Guantanamo prisoners’ lawyer Michael Ratner, David Swanson, Katrina survivors, former US diplomat and retired US Army Reserve Colonel Ann Wright.
Indictments from the Commission’s first session were delivered to the White House on January 10 by a delegation including Ray McGovern who told the press: "Back in the '30s the Germans hunkered down and hoped that Hitler and the Nazis would just go away. They didn't do the kind of thing [we are doing here]. Unlawful wiretapping and spying, Iraq and the torture and detentions, and on and on. This can't go down unopposed." Ann Wright on the Tribunal: "These are indictments that will ultimately bring down this administration."
The Commission is open to the public. Friday/Saturday sessions are at Riverside Church, Sunday session at Columbia Law School. More info: http://www.bushcommission.org
From Dennis Kucinich's political campaigns and calls for peace to the top 40 organic products companies; from Eve Ensler's calls for women in power to what's responsible about socially responsible investing. As you read Ode you'll realize it's an international news magazine unlike any other.
Ode reports on stories about progressive politics, sustainability, natural health, leading-edge science and spirituality, and much more. Smile, laugh and cry with Ode. Find out more about Ode's special offer here, just in time for the holidays.
Ode has been making waves. Anita Roddick, founder of the Body Shop, calls Ode "essential reading," and Benjamin Zander, conductor of the Boston Philharmonic calls Ode a "way of life." Now, for a limited time, you can get an introductory subscription to Ode of six issues for just $10. Don't miss out on getting this big, colorful magazine that will enhance your perspective for about the cost of a single movie ticket. Find out more.
_________
Demand that Republican Senate Leadership Let the Truth Out
President Bush has said over 100 times that Congress was shown the same pre-war intelligence he was. Senator Kennedy submitted an amendment in December to an intelligence bill asking the White House to turn over to the Senate Intelligence Committee the President's daily briefings, beginning with the last term of the Clinton Administration and ending on first day of the war in Iraq in 2003. In response, an anonymous Republican Senator blocked the bill and is still blocking it.
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/6818
Email and phone these three members of the Republican leadership and demand that they have the hold taken off the bill:
SENATOR BILL FRIST, Phone: 202-224-3344, Fax: 202-228-1264
http://tinyurl.com/2dnol
SENATOR MITCH MCCONNELL, Phone: 202-224-2541, Fax: 202-224-2499 http://mcconnell.senate.gov/contact_form.cfm
SENATOR PAT ROBERTS, Phone: 202-224-4774, Fax: 202-224-3514
http://roberts.senate.gov/e-mail_pat.html
____________
Stop Alito! (An alert from Progressive Democrats of America)
Judge Alito's nomination to the Supreme Court poses a grave threat to the nation. President Bush's nomination of Third Circuit Judge Samuel Alito to the U.S. Supreme Court poses grave threats to numerous progressive values. Unlike recently appointed Chief Justice John Roberts, Judge Alito has an extensive paper trail documenting the right-wing political agenda that he has actively advanced, not only as a high-ranking official in the Reagan Administration, but also as a judge. E-MAIL YOUR SENATORS:
http://tinyurl.com/8qfag
____________
"I could never again raise my voice against the violence of the oppressed in the ghettos without having first spoken clearly to the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today -- my own government." -- Martin Luther King, Jr.
____________
FORWARD THIS INFORMATION
http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=impeach
http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=Downing+Street+Memo
Starmail - 17. Jan, 10:44
16
Jan
2006
Gore Assails Domestic Wiretapping Program
Former Vice President Al Gore Assails Domestic Wiretapping Program, Calling It Illegal
By LARRY MARGASAK
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Former Vice President Al Gore called Monday for an independent investigation of President Bush's domestic spying program, contending the president "repeatedly and persistently" broke the law by eavesdropping on Americans without court approval.
Speaking on Martin Luther King Jr.'s national holiday, the man who lost the 2000 presidential election to Bush was interrupted repeatedly by applause as he called the anti-terrorism program "a threat to the very structure of our government."
Gore charged that the administration acted without congressional authority and made a "direct assault" on a special federal court that authorizes requests to eavesdrop on Americans. One judge on the court resigned last month, voicing concerns about the National Security Agency's surveillance of e-mails and phone calls.
A spokeswoman for the Republican National Committee, Tracey Schmitt, attacked Gore's comments shortly after address.
"Al Gore's incessant need to insert himself in the headline of the day is almost as glaring as his lack of understanding of the threats facing America," Schmitt said. "While the president works to protect Americans from terrorists, Democrats deliver no solutions of their own, only diatribes laden with inaccuracies and anger. "
Gore's speech was sponsored by the American Constitution Society for Law and Policy and The Liberty Coalition, two organizations that have expressed concern about the policy.
The former vice president said that Attorney General Alberto Gonzales should name a special counsel to investigate the program, citing the attorney general's "obvious conflict of interest" as a member of the Bush Cabinet as well as the nation's top law enforcement officer.
Gonzales has agreed to testify publicly at a Senate hearing on the program, and he told a news conference recently that the president acted "consistent with his legal authority" to protect Americans from a terrorist threat.
Gore, speaking at DAR Constitution Hall, said the concerns are especially important on the King holiday because the slain civil rights leader was among thousands of Americans whose private communications were intercepted by the U.S. government.
King, as a foremost civil rights activist in the 1950s and 60s, had his telephone conversations wiretapped by the FBI, which kept a file on him and thousands of other civil rights and anti-Vietnam war activists.
Gore said there is still much to learn about the domestic surveillance program, but he already has drawn a conclusion about its legality.
"What we do know about this pervasive wiretapping virtually compels the conclusion that the president of the United States has been breaking the law repeatedly and persistently," the Democrat maintained.
Bush has pointed to a congressional resolution passed after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, that authorized him to use force in the fight against terrorism as allowing him to order the program.
Gore had a different view, contending that Bush failed to convince Congress to support a domestic spying program, so he "secretly assumed that power anyway, as if congressional authorization was a useless bother."
He said the spying program must be considered along with other administration actions as a constitutional power grab by the president. Gore cited imprisoning American citizens without charges in terrorism cases, mistreatment of prisoners including torture and seizure of individuals in foreign countries and delivering them to autocratic regimes "infamous for the cruelty of their techniques."
Gore didn't only criticize government officials. Referring to news reports that private telecommunications companies have provided the Bush administration with access to private information on Americans, Gore said any company that did so should immediately end its complicity in the program.
Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Copyright © 2006 ABC News Internet Ventures
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=1511003
Informant: John Calvert
By LARRY MARGASAK
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Former Vice President Al Gore called Monday for an independent investigation of President Bush's domestic spying program, contending the president "repeatedly and persistently" broke the law by eavesdropping on Americans without court approval.
Speaking on Martin Luther King Jr.'s national holiday, the man who lost the 2000 presidential election to Bush was interrupted repeatedly by applause as he called the anti-terrorism program "a threat to the very structure of our government."
Gore charged that the administration acted without congressional authority and made a "direct assault" on a special federal court that authorizes requests to eavesdrop on Americans. One judge on the court resigned last month, voicing concerns about the National Security Agency's surveillance of e-mails and phone calls.
A spokeswoman for the Republican National Committee, Tracey Schmitt, attacked Gore's comments shortly after address.
"Al Gore's incessant need to insert himself in the headline of the day is almost as glaring as his lack of understanding of the threats facing America," Schmitt said. "While the president works to protect Americans from terrorists, Democrats deliver no solutions of their own, only diatribes laden with inaccuracies and anger. "
Gore's speech was sponsored by the American Constitution Society for Law and Policy and The Liberty Coalition, two organizations that have expressed concern about the policy.
The former vice president said that Attorney General Alberto Gonzales should name a special counsel to investigate the program, citing the attorney general's "obvious conflict of interest" as a member of the Bush Cabinet as well as the nation's top law enforcement officer.
Gonzales has agreed to testify publicly at a Senate hearing on the program, and he told a news conference recently that the president acted "consistent with his legal authority" to protect Americans from a terrorist threat.
Gore, speaking at DAR Constitution Hall, said the concerns are especially important on the King holiday because the slain civil rights leader was among thousands of Americans whose private communications were intercepted by the U.S. government.
King, as a foremost civil rights activist in the 1950s and 60s, had his telephone conversations wiretapped by the FBI, which kept a file on him and thousands of other civil rights and anti-Vietnam war activists.
Gore said there is still much to learn about the domestic surveillance program, but he already has drawn a conclusion about its legality.
"What we do know about this pervasive wiretapping virtually compels the conclusion that the president of the United States has been breaking the law repeatedly and persistently," the Democrat maintained.
Bush has pointed to a congressional resolution passed after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, that authorized him to use force in the fight against terrorism as allowing him to order the program.
Gore had a different view, contending that Bush failed to convince Congress to support a domestic spying program, so he "secretly assumed that power anyway, as if congressional authorization was a useless bother."
He said the spying program must be considered along with other administration actions as a constitutional power grab by the president. Gore cited imprisoning American citizens without charges in terrorism cases, mistreatment of prisoners including torture and seizure of individuals in foreign countries and delivering them to autocratic regimes "infamous for the cruelty of their techniques."
Gore didn't only criticize government officials. Referring to news reports that private telecommunications companies have provided the Bush administration with access to private information on Americans, Gore said any company that did so should immediately end its complicity in the program.
Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Copyright © 2006 ABC News Internet Ventures
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=1511003
Informant: John Calvert
Starmail - 16. Jan, 23:09
