More: By 76 to 10, with Democrats divided, the Senate voted to invoke cloture and advance the Intelligence Committee bill for consideration. A measure to block it, which was led by Senator Christopher J. Dodd, (D-CT) fell short, as those who wanted the bill to reach the floor got 16 votes more than the 60 needed to achieve that goal. Some Democrats voted to advance the bill despite the retroactive immunity provision in order to offer amendments. The House version does not include immunity for telecoms that cooperated in spying on their customers. However early this evening, Senator Reid announced, "We have tried to work through this process, and it appears quite clear that on this bill we are not going to be able to do that." Reid had spent the afternoon huddling with Senate leaders and fellow Democrats to trying to work out a deal over an update to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Congratulations, Senator Dodd for stopping the bill for now.Update(Live): The discussion on the amendment to strike corporate immunity is underway. Senator Ted Kennedy is speaking on the floor. If a filibuster is held, it will be the first actual filibuster in fifteen years. The Senators are excoriating the Charlatan's threats to hold American security hostage to voting for corporate immunity. He has promised to veto any FISA reform bill that does not contain protection for companies that turn over private information to the government. The current law, the so-called Protect America Act, allowing domestic spying, is set to expire in February. Corporate supporters claim that civil rights lawsuits are imposing "ruinous" expenses on the wealthy international businesses as well as damaging their reputations in other countries in which they do business. The Republicans continue to wave the bloody shirt of 9/11, essentially equating any objections to the proposed reform as helping the enemy. The FISA court was erected in response to the intelligence excesses of the Nixon era. It has approved 99% of requests for authorization to intercept communications. Oregon's Senator Ron Wyden is complaining the Regime refused to let all senators read the legal justifications for it's warrantless wiretap program. Wyden, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, has seen the documents and is not convinced that the programs pass legal muster. QWest was also not convinced that the programs were legal and refused to participate. Five years of retroactive immunity is not justified under the secret record according to Senator Wyden. Wyden calls the legal justification provided by the Regime "flimsy" and says that senators would be "flabbergasted" if they were allowed to read them. Senator Dodd, a member of the Senate for 26 years and a member of the Foreign Relations Committee is aghast that he cannot read these documents before voting on the amendment to strip immunity from the proposed bill. Senator Wyden is also proposing an amendment to protect American citizens from warrantless snooping while abroad. Senator Dodd is now discussing the differences between the Judiciary Committee and the Intelligence Committee versions of the bill. In his opinion only the Judiciary Committee bill protects American citizens from unjustified spying. Dodd resents the continued use of a "false dichotomy" by the Regime to justify a continued erosion of our constitutional rights. He mentions the Military Commissions Act which denied the ancient common law right of habeus corpus to detainees. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) is again raising the impervious wall of "state secrets". Orrin Hatch never met a secret he was not willing to keep regardless of the cost to democracy and open government. The Intelligence Committee bill contains the objectionable retroactive immunity provision. No senator has actually explained on the floor how technology changes have outmoded the regulatory structure protecting due process of law. Both proposed reforms require a warrant from the FISA court for a intercepting the communications of a US person in the United States. However, the Intelligence Committee bill allows authorization to be requested retroactively. [on line link terminated]
Senator Chris Dodd's people inform me that Majority Leader Reid is asking for a "motion to proceed" which is in effect a signal that he will ignore Senator Dodd's informal request for a hold on the FISA reform bill that includes retroactive immunity for telecoms. This means Senator Dodd will introduce an amendment stripping the bill of the immunity provisions. If that move fails the Senator will be forced to actually filibuster the bill on the floor of the Senate. Senators Obama, Biden and Clinton have all issued press statements saying they will support a filibuster.
This fight is more than about allowing some liberal activists to sue corporations and collect attorney fees. The Regime is stonewalling all efforts by Congress to get information about it's alarming disregard of our constitutional rights in the name of an eternal "war on terror". Granting immunity to the telecommunications companies will cut off the only effective way now available of obtaining information on the extent of domestic spying. From what we do know, it is pervasive and not very discriminating. Giving the companies protection from civil rights suits will only encourage them to cooperate in the future with government requests for private customer information regardless of how intrusive the request. Immunity is the proverbial first step down the slippery slope of a police state. Help Senator Dodd fight the good fight by calling your Senators and asking them to vote against corporate immunity for violating our constitutional rights and to help filibuster the bill if necessary.