No subject
Singleton, Norman
Norman.Singleton at mail.house.gov
Fri Sep 21 10:26:44 PDT 2001
Friends, even some alleged "conservatives" are eagerly anticipating
sacrificing liberty for the illusion of security [...]
http://www.conservativereform.org/bullmoose/
Wednesday, September 19, 2001 (3:13 PM ET)
Bedfellows. The Moose is heartened by the national show of unity
against terrorism. But, beware of strange bedfellows.
The alliance of right and left wing flotsam and jetsam is nothing new
on the foreign policy front. We witnessed it during the Kosovo
conflict when noted hawks such as Lott and DeLay joined the "peace
now" crowd. With a direct attack on the American homeland, dissident
voices are muted but have not entirely disappeared.
The most bizarre example comes from Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson
who suggested that the attack was God's wrath against a nation that
has sinned. This was a new theocratic right variant on the "Blame
American First" theme that used to be the purview of the left. As was
eloquently stated during the 2000 Republican primaries, Robertson and
Falwell are truly the "agents of intolerance."
Meanwhile, a few timid left voices are suggesting that we must look
for "root causes" for the terrorist behavior. However, the American
people are not in a receptive audience for the root cause crowd.
A more pernicious development is an emerging right-left alliance
against the ability of law enforcement to conduct domestic
surveillance of terrorists.
According to the Washington Post, groups ranging from the ACLU to the
Free Congress Foundation and the Gun Owners of America are uniting to
"declare their concerns that increased surveillance initiatives would
invade privacy." One conservative group called the Coalition for
Constitutional Liberties declared that, "our most basic and
fundamental freedoms are under attack unlike any time since the
Revolutionary Era."
The Moose would find this all so amusing if it weren't so sad. Some on
the right have long had the constitutional outlook of the ACLU on
issues ranging from soft money to the drug war.
Yes, there is a tremendous threat to our security, but it isn't coming
from the FBI! The unholy alliance of the right and the left is not
focused on stopping terrorists who threaten our very lives, but rather
on restraining law enforcement which seeks to protect our safety.
Privacy is fine, but at a time such as this, we must guard our
security first. This right-left coalition is just another variant on
the discredited liberal gang from the 60's which sought to tie the
hands of the police against criminals.
Make no mistake, there is a terrorist conspiracy operating within the
borders of the United States. According to testimony from a federal
official during congressional hearings last year, "As we know, Middle
East terrorist groups - such as Hezbollah, Hamas, and Osama bin
Laden's organization - are using computerized files, email and
encryption to support their organizations."
Some so-called conservatives have long opposed allowing law
enforcement to have encryption-busting powers. Evidently, the largesse
of the computer industry and other special interests can be very
influential. The Moose, however, makes no apologies for desiring that
the FBI has every tool available to thwart the terrorist plans. Give
Attorney General Ashcroft all he requests, and more.
If this is war, it is time for both the left and the right to choose
sides.
[...]
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