Senator Specter Calls for Hearings on U.S. Spy Program - New York Times

Senator Specter Calls for Hearings on U.S. Spy Program - New York Times:

Senator Kennedy, I have no chills up or down my spine when the government is attempting to protect me and Americans from terrorists.

What gives me chills is that you and others attempt to camouflage your political goals as protecting the civil liberties of Americans. I can do and say whatever I have a mind to do or say within the bounds of decency.

Howl and wail if you must, but I sleep well when the NSA keeps tabs on possible bad guys.

The New York Times ran this story to kill the Patriot Act and take the Iraqi elections (good hews for this Administration) off the front page. How else can their timing be explained? If it's alleged that Fox News is in cahoots with the Republicans/Conservatives, with this stunt the NY times is clearly aligned with the Democrats/Liberals.

To publish this story at this time, whether it's true or not, was done for political purposes, I'm convinced. They have gone beyond reporting the news, they are manipulating it for political purposes. Shame on the Times! They deserve to have their position eroded by the rise in electronic journalism.

Michelle Malkin's take on this worth a read.

"Neither Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice nor White House press secretary Scott McClellan would confirm or deny the report which said the super-secret NSA had spied on as many as 500 people at any given time since 2002 in this country.
That year, following the Sept. 11 attacks, Bush authorized the NSA to monitor the international phone calls and international e-mails of hundreds -- perhaps thousands -- of people inside the United States, the Times reported.
McClellan said the White House has received no requests for information from lawmakers because of the report. ''Congress does have an important oversight role,'' he said.
Before the program began, the NSA typically limited its domestic surveillance to foreign embassies and missions and obtained court orders for such investigations. Overseas, 5,000 to 7,000 people suspected of terrorist ties are monitored at one time.
''This is Big Brother run amok,'' declared Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass. Sen. Russell Feingold, D-Wis., called it a ''shocking revelation'' that ''ought to send a chill down the spine of every senator and every American.''"